China ~ Half-a-Billion smothering under 'Airpocalypse'

[resister]

It should only look that way on pyrotechnic holidays.

[waltky]

Arctic sea ice loss causin' China's 'airpocalypse'...

China's 'airpocalypse' linked to Arctic sea ice loss
Wed, 15 Mar 2017 - A deadly haze of air pollution over China in 2013 has been linked to the melting of Arctic sea ice.

The air pollution that lingered over eastern China for nearly a month in 2013 has been linked to the loss of Arctic sea ice the previous autumn. A study says the haze lasted much longer because the melting ice and increased snowfall altered wind circulation patterns. If Arctic ice continues to shrink due to climate change, the scientists say similar events will likely recur. They argue that this could threaten the Beijing Winter Olympics set for 2022.

Emissions puzzle

Air quality issues have plagued China in recent years but the pollution experienced in January 2013 was significant because it lasted so long. The large-scale haze stayed in place for almost a month and around 70% of China's 74 major cities exceeded the daily air quality standard for very fine particulate matter, which poses serious risks to health. Scientists were puzzled by the event as the Chinese government had taken steps to curb emissions from coal fired power plants, one of the most significant contributors to air pollution.

Air pollution that lingered over eastern China in 2013 is being linked to changes in Arctic sea ice

Now researchers say that record Arctic sea ice decline in late 2012, plus extensive snowfall over Siberia disturbed wind patterns and produced stagnant air conditions over the east China plain. "In wintertime, in regions like Beijing you get these north west howling winds that blow like hell," said Prof Yuhang Wang from Georgia Tech University, one of the report's authors. "A ridge system controls the intensity and location of this cold air moving south so what happens when you put in sea ice forcing or snow forcing, the ridge system gets weaker and moves eastward - instead of cold air blowing in the eastern part of China, it went to Korea and Japan in January 2013."

A haze of air pollution hung over eastern China for around a month in 2013

The research team looked at ventilation conditions over the past 35 years and were able to show that the poor dispersal seen in 2013 was unique. They then looked at the climate related factors that might contribute to poor ventilation and their findings indicate that the loss of Arctic ice and snowfall over the forests of Eurasia were critical for the haze event. The researchers weren't able to separate the scale of the impacts between these two factors. What they are sure about is that in combination, they made the haze much worse. "You see evidence in the summer that the particulate matter is getting less, but you don't see a clear trend in the winter and what we believe is that the effort is being hammered by changes in the Polar region with ice and snow," said Prof Wang.

MORE

[Cannons Front]

Arctic sea ice loss causin' China's 'airpocalypse'...

China's 'airpocalypse' linked to Arctic sea ice loss Wed, 15 Mar 2017 - A deadly haze of air pollution over China in 2013 has been linked to the melting of Arctic sea ice.

So let me see if I have this straight.... The US is the biggest to blame for Global Climate change.... and our actions are causing it...... because of us the Artic ice is melting..... and because the ice is melting the wind is not blowing through china enough to clear away their horrible pollution...... So it is our fault that China is polluted not the fault Of the Chinese who are running all the cars, and industrial plants that are causing the pollution.......

[Mini Me]

I dont care about Chinese people more than I care about their crap coming here and affecting us.

We can always sell them more coal!
Saves American jobs, and reduces their population!

[waltky]

China winning war on smog...

China winning war on smog, US study says
Wed, Mar 14, 2018 - China appears to be “winning” its war on air pollution, making so much progress that life expectancy could rise by more than two years, a US university study said.

The Chinese government has been waging a battle to clear its skies of smog that has cut life expectancy in some regions and prompted its citizens to buy masks and air purifiers to protect themselves during peak pollution days. The University of Chicago says in a study released on Monday that while the world’s biggest polluter faces a long road to reach national and international air quality standards, the results “suggest the country is winning its war on pollution.” Based on daily data from more than 200 monitors across China from 2013 to last year, the analysis found that cities have cut levels of PM2.5 — the tiny airborne particles considered most harmful to health — by an average of 32 percent in just four years. If sustained, such reductions would increase the life expectancy of the average Chinese citizen by 2.4 years relative to 2013. PM2.5 can play a role in heart disease, stroke and lung ailments ,such as emphysema and cancer.

Another study published by the university last year found that air pollution in northern China had cut life expectancy by three years compared with the south of the country. “We don’t have a historical example of a country achieving such rapid reductions in air pollution. It’s remarkable,” Michael Greenstone, the economist and director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago that conducted the studies, said yesterday. By contrast, it took the US a dozen years and a severe recession to attain similar improvements in air quality after it enacted its 1970 Clean Air Act, he said. “What these last four years have demonstrated quite loudly is that things can change and they can change rapidly — it just requires political will,” he said.

Delegates walk on Tiananmen Square shrouded with pollution haze as they arrive to attend a plenary session of the National People’s Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

As public discontent mounted over the nation’s choking smog, the Chinese Communist Party made clean air a priority. In 2013, it launched an ambitious air pollution action plan that sought to slash PM2.5 levels in key regions, such as the northern Beijing-Hebei-Tianjin area and the Yangtze River Delta, by up to a quarter. In 2014, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (李克強) declared “war” on pollution. Since then, teams of inspectors have been deployed across major cities in north China to ensure compliance with pollution standards. Highlighting the challenge facing the country, Beijing’s skies were a dismal gray yesterday, as PM2.5 levels soared to 270 micrograms per cubic meter — more than 10 times the maximum recommended by the WHO for a 24-hour period. However, the capital and other places have made progress.

Beijing cut PM2.5 levels by 35 percent between 2013 and last year, increasing lifespans of its 20 million residents by 3.3 years, the study found. Baoding, China’s most polluted city as of 2015, cut pollution by 38 percent, adding 4.5 years of life. “China’s not held up as a democratic regime, and yet here we have a clear example of the public demanding something and the government delivering it,” Greenstone said. Yet the war on smog has come with social costs. To clear the skies, authorities ordered thousands of polluting factories to leave urban centers, displacing hundreds of thousands of migrants. They also designated “no-coal zones” that pushed more than 3 million households in the region around Beijing to abruptly switch over to gas or electric heating, often removing coal boilers before new systems were functional.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/worl.../14/2003689272