China smog around 50 times WHO recommendations

[yuiyoshida]

[Thespian2]

1. In a decade or so,

these pictures will reflect the wonderfully clear days of the past...I cry for you, Mother Earth...

[Warpy]

2. I remember air just like that here in the US

when people burned coal in central heating and steel plants were in the area.

London had the Great Smog in 1952 and passed their City of London Acts in 1954 and first clean air act in 1956.

We've cleaned up in the US mostly because coal is a pain in the ass to use for central heating and people modernized to oil or natural gas. We've also shipped our industry offshore, making us a lot poorer and weaker as a country but able to breathe better.

I know China is pouring money into clean energy research. It just might not happen soon enough for many of its people.

The Great Smog killed 12,000 people by modern estimates and it lasted only 4 days. China's pollution is nearly as bad and lasts for months.

[jtuck004]

4. Earlier I was waiting on a train going West, full of coal, heading for China. The air is

still on our earth, in our envelope, and still being poisoned.

The visible signs have been moved offshore, but the greenhouse gasses we are releasing are still being affected. We even measure Chinese pollution in our Great Lakes.

But as long as we are comfortable, perhaps it won't matter if we are burning up the grandkids future while pretending to do otherwise.

[ErikJ]

3. And Republicans are trying to get rid of the EPA so we can be like....."commy" China?

idiots.

[erronis]

5. But at least the Chinese understand they have a problem and are taking steps

They have a very long way to go, especially given the rural coal burning.

The USofA, ably (not) led by the repugs wants to increase our use of fossil fuels.

I think China with its investments in improving the environment may surpass the US in innovation, technologies, patents, and brain power. And I think that's great - someone needs to do this.

The grandchildren of the repugs will need to study off-shore history books to find out why they got screwed by their ancestors. The local history will still be about the Pauls - Bunyan, Revere, and the churchy one.