Much of the Chinese capital shut down Tuesday after Beijing’s city government issued its first red alert for pollution — closing schools and construction sites and restricting the number of cars on the road.
Beijing’s Municipal Bureau of Environmental Protection warned that severe pollution would cloak the Chinese capital for several days, starting Tuesday morning.
According to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, the air quality index stood at 250 this morning, classed as “very unhealthy” and 10 times higher than World Health Organization recommended levels.
Gao Yuanli, 35, told CNN that the smog frequently made her life difficult. She wears face masks during most winter days and bought an air purifier two years ago.
“I can’t go out on weekends now if the air is bad, and I don’t go to outdoor markets anymore,” she said.
The alert means extra measures will be enforced.
Car use is being halved by allowing only odd or even numbered license plates on the road at one time and heavy vehicles including garbage trucks are banned from the streets.
Other polluting industrial activity has been curbed, as have fireworks and outdoor barbecuing.
The red alert — the highest level in the system — is due to be in force until noon Thursday local time.
The city’s roads and sidewalks were much quieter than usual and small businesses owners like Jia Xiaojiang, who makes egg pancakes, complained of fewer customers.
Jia doesn’t wear face masks, but says the pollution has brought her respiratory issues.
“The smog is like toxic gas,” she said. “I never had a sore throat before. Starting from last year, my throat hurts once I speak.”
Disruption
The red alert caused disruption for some parents, who had to scramble Monday evening to find alternative childcare arrangements. Li Ning, a 33-year-old IT worker, said his child was being looked after by grandparents.
CNN reporters in Beijing said the air pollution didn’t feel quite as severe as last week, when air quality, as measured by the U.S. Embassy, went above 500 or “beyond index” on Monday and Tuesday.
Some residents have questioned why the unprecedented red alert level wasn’t issued then. But others are resigned to living with air pollution that’s regularly 10 times worse than recommended levels.
“I’d find a day when the sky is blue unusual,” says Wolf Hu.
He travels often for work, often preferring China’s high-speed rail network to flying, which is prone to smog-related delays — 12 outbound flights and 14 inbound flights into the city have been canceled today.
According to state-run news agency Xinhua, a red smog alert is only issued if heavy pollution is expected to last longer than 72 hours.
China is the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter and aims to halve its emissions peak by 2030.
Most of the country’s carbon emissions come from burning coal to heat homes and to fuel power plants, a practice that spikes during cold winter months.