Officials from China’s Ministry of Environment have promised to rectify the adverse weather conditions ahead of the opening ceremonies of the Olympics on February 4th.
24.1. 17:03 | Updated 24.1. 17:59
To the Olympics there are only a couple of weeks left, and the Chinese authorities are fighting on two fronts: the coronavirus and “very unfavorable” weather conditions. There is a harsh smog above Beijing.
According to The Washington Post A phone app warning Beijing residents about the pollution weather turned purple on Sunday, indicating a “very unhealthy” amount of small particles in the air.
The weather forecast for the next seven days promises a slight improvement in the middle of the week and then a turn for the worse on January 31st. Then there’s the New Year celebration on the Chinese calendar, and fireworks make matters worse.
On Monday the environment ministry said the olympics would begin just as winter weather creates “very unfavorable” conditions in northern china.
According to the newspaper, ministry officials have promised to rectify the situation before the opening ceremonies on February 4th. Regional authorities are empowered to take “necessary measures” to improve air quality.
A Finnish researcher interviewed by The Washington Post Lauri Myllyvirran According to the report, the deterioration of air quality in Beijing, despite state measures, shows how much Beijing needs to do to systematically limit air pollution during the winter season. Myllyvirta is a leading analyst at the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air.
“Although progress has been made in limiting emissions, the industry around Beijing is causing smog to return to the city in unfavorable weather,” Myllyvirta told the newspaper.
For the 2008 Summer Olympics, a lot of work was done in Beijing to reduce smog. Hundreds of factories were closed or relocated.
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