Daytime in BeijingThe Beijing Olympics are getting ready in more ways than one. Beijing has a drastic plan to get rid of its gray covering of pollution just 3 weeks before the Olympics are due to begin.
3.3 million vehicles will be taken off the roads. This is about one half of the motorized vehicles that travel the roads each day. Polluting factories will be closed up. Chemical plants, power stations and foundries remaining open have cut their emissions by 30%. Construction which produces dust will be stopped.
The Beijing Olympics which will be highly stage managed is aiming at showing off China as a rising power of the 21st century. They need clear air for the 10,500 athletes and polluted air would be their worst nightmare for the opening ceremony. If the air quality is poor Beijing Olympic events lasting more then one hour will be postponed.
Veerabhadran Ramanathan, an atmospheric scientist from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, stated that pollution could be blown into the Beijing Olympics by unpredictable winds despite all the preparations that are being made.
Beautiful venues and the $40 billion which has been spent on infrastructure cannot ultimately hide Beijing’s polluted air. According to a World Bank study, China has 16 of the 20 worst cities in the world for air quality. Three-fourths of the water flowing through Chinese cities is unfit for drinking or fishing.