Beijing to ban traffic in August, and maybe during the Olympics
One of Beijing's problems for next year's Summer Olympic Games is the high levels of pollution. The levels are so alarming that the International Olympic Commitee has raised some concerns about this issue. As a solution, the Chinese Olympic Comitee is going to ban private cars traffic in the city for two weeks in August, as a test measure to check if the air quality improves. Should this measure work, no private driving would be allowed during the 2008 Games. Similar policies have been followed before in places such as México City and Italy (although not as drastic).
Other measures taken by the Chinese authorities to reduce pollution include the substitution of 1,600 coal-fuelled manufacturing facilities and power plants. The city will also replace 50,000 taxis and 10,000 buses with more modern, clean and efficient models.
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[Source: Europa Press via Econoticias]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Owen 8:51AM (7/05/2007)
I just came back from Beijing and a couple other Chinese cities a few weeks ago and if you haven't been there you really can't fathom how bad it really is. When it's hot out, take a deep breath it's like putting your head next to a tailpipe. You can complain all you want about LA smog, but I honestly do believe it when they say that something like 20%+ of the smog from LA is coming from China. That being said, they are actually doing something about it, building Maglev trains, funding public transportation projects, penalizing polluting companies, but at the same time, the curruption there will gladly turn a blind eye for the right amount of $$$ and the rate of growth is so alarming that pollution is just a part of the game.
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