Zhengzhou, like most major Chinese cities, has a severe air-pollution problem. And it’s about to get worse.
I’ve gotten used to the heavy smog and dirty air since arriving here in late August, though I haven’t had to use the breathing masks I brought with me as a safeguard.
That may be about to change. According to local residents, when coal plants are fired up for the winter heating season, the belching smoke creates a charcoal haze that can make breathing difficult and trigger coughing spasms.
Choking smog paralyzed the northeastern city of Harbin after the coal plants started operating in October. Schools were forced to close, the airport was shut down and traffic came to a standstill. Visibility was reduced to 30 feet in some areas and the pollution index reached hazardous levels.
Harbin, known as the Ice City because of its annual festival featuring ice and snow sculptures, experienced the extreme pollution earlier than most Chinese cities because its cold climate requires a longer heating season. Now other parts of China are going to suffer a similar fate.
China has a lot of problems, but none worse than filthy air and water caused by rapid industrialization and no environmental regulations. If the country doesn’t do something drastic to combat pollution, its economic progress may come to a grinding halt.
