Even With PM 2.5 Levels Well Over 500, A Week Of Foul Air Doesn't Merit Top Alert Level In Beijing
Public anger continued to rise in Beijing yesterday at the city government's failure to issue a top-level smog alert after days of heavy pollution, though the air started to clear in the evening as a cold front brought rain and wind.
The Beijing Environmental Bureau removed an orange alert for smog - the second in a four-tier system - that had been in place since Friday, as the official Air Quality Index dropped from above 500 to about 460 at 5pm. At the US embassy, the PM2.5 reading - which measures tiny pollutant particles that are the deadliest - dropped from 551 micrograms per cubic metre at noon to 446 in the afternoon, still a hazardous level.
The city's meteorological centre has issued 12 smog alerts since February 20. Nine were yellow alerts, the third-highest on the scale, which means people must stay indoors; three were orange, which require a halt to construction, barbecues and fireworks. But Beijing has been under public pressure to issue the highest alert - red - which calls for measures such as closing schools to minimise the impact on health.
A school affiliated to Peking University suspended some classes on Tuesday and Wednesday, though the education committee ordered them to resume yesterday, China National Radio and the Beijing News said.
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http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1435892/public-anger-beijing-authorities-fail-post-highest-smog-alert