This week I saw an article about the air pollution in China. The smog in Beijing is so bad that commercial airline flights had to be cancelled. People cannot walk in the streets without gas masks for fear of breathing in the toxins. The smog level was 20 times higher than what the World Health Organization deems safe. This smog contains tiny particles that can penetrate deeply into your lungs. City officials in Beijing ordered over 100 factories to take off to let the smog settle. And we Americans think were bad! Just imagine smog thick enough to act like fog in the city. What is this doing to our bodies let alone to the environment?!
All my life I've grown up camping. Ive been to every state but 4, and have camped in at least 95% of the National Parks. I have climbed and hiked countless mountains and trails. As beautiful as scenery can be, there never fails to be a twist in my gut when I look out across a mountain rage and see blue haze, which I know to be pollution. If I lived in Beijing its a good possibility I would throw up with disgust. That is one of the reasons I want to go into Environmental Studies is so that I can help prevent and repair what humans have done to the Environment. Below I've included the link to the article and I encourage everybody to check it out. If that doesn't make you want to save the world, then I don't know what will!
http://weather.yahoo.com/smog-thick-enough-cancel-flights-hits-beijing-074510816.html
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ReplyDeleteHaving traveled to Beijing, China 2 summers ago to visit family who lives there, I found this article interesting and relatable. When visiting, I remember seeing people walking around everyday in masks to protect themselves day after day from the harmful pollutants in the air. What a shame for many of those people to grow up never knowing what it is like to breathe 'fresh' air and to wonder if they will see the sun today or if it will be blocked out by the smog. Being so extreme that flights have to be cancelled, the smog levels are out of control. Hopefully the new mayor will have success in implementing less pollution from companies and reducing older cars on the roads to allow the people of Beijing to live and enjoy healthier lives.
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