| The green side of Olympics |
| Sunday, 10 August 2008, Written by Julien | |
|
I usually see the dark side of air pollution in Beijing: the data! The reason is that air in Beijing is not good compared with international standards. It is a fact that on most days air in Beijing would be considered as bad in European cities. However, if I step back and have a look at the general context I am impressed by the efforts Beijing made to curb the emissions and by its successes in controlling the pollution. It is amazing that with more than 10% yearly growth over the last 7 years, SO2 & CO levels have been significantly reduced and NO2 & particle concentrations have been stabilized. 
The measures that have been taken are really bold and I am sure no developped country would have been able to implement them. As it might be hard to understand for people not living in China, here below are just few of the measures taken to modernize transportation:
Thanks to these measures the use of public transportation is now cheap and comfortable. People can let their cars at home and commute with mass transport. It's good for our air and for the people! 
For sure, air in Beijing is not good yet. But I think it would be much worse if the Olympics were not here: the international pressure helped Beijing to improve the environmental situation. However, more efforts need to be made to achieve a good air quality and I hope the current momentum will be sufficient to stay on this positive trend. Comments
Eugene wrote :
Woah, I thought the subway fares are already very cheap. Now it's even cheaper? When I visited Beijing last year, I had difficulty finding $1.20 taxis. Even the old taxis are publishing the more expensive rates. So I guess by now, one can find a newer and more comfortable taxi on the road. Btw, what's that tall building besides the birdnest-like stadium.
Martin Liu wrote :
I hope the air could keep clean like this after Olympic game. Thanks the rain last nigh! I feel much better this morning.
|
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
