Beijing officials announced a new environmental police squad to root out illegal burning, the latest government response to the widespread public anger over China’s persistent problems with smog.
Beijing Acting Mayor Cai Qi (蔡奇) said at a meeting on Saturday that the force would target open-air barbecues, garbage incineration and the burning of wood and other biomass, Xinhua news agency reported.
Cai announced several other measures on Saturday, including a target of cutting the use of coal by 30 percent this year to shutting down 500 higher-polluting factories and upgrading 2,500 more.
About 300,000 high-pollution vehicles will also be restricted from entering the city starting next month, he said.
Beijing and dozens of cities in China spend many winter days under a thick, gray haze, with air pollution levels that routinely exceed WHO guidelines.
Beijing spent part of last week under an “orange alert,” the second-highest level in China’s four-tiered air alert system.
More than 20 cities were on the highest “red alert.” Smog is an acutely felt issue in China’s cities, where a red alert can lead to the closure of schools and businesses, flight cancellations, and shutdowns of highways to keep cars off the roads.
During a red alert in Beijing last month, authorities banned construction crews from spray-painting and even seized the charcoal grills from some restaurants.
Cai on Saturday blamed polluting activities such as burning garbage or wood on “the result of lax supervision and weak law enforcement.”
However, China’s pollution is caused chiefly by its thousands of coal-burning factories and a surplus of older, inefficient vehicles. Measures like capping production days or shutting down older coal mines run the risk of driving up energy prices and further slowing the economy.
The pledge by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to “work, work, work, work and work” for her country has been named the catchphrase of the year, recognizing the effort Japan’s first female leader had to make to reach the top. Takaichi uttered the phrase in October when she was elected as head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Many were initially as worried about her work ethic as supportive of her enthusiasm. In a country notorious for long working hours, especially for working women who are also burdened with homemaking and caregiving, overwork is a sensitive topic. The recognition triggered a
A plan by Switzerland’s right-wing People’s Party to cap the population at 10 million has the backing of almost half the country, according to a poll before an expected vote next year. The party, which has long campaigned against immigration, argues that too-fast population growth is overwhelming housing, transport and public services. The level of support comes despite the government urging voters to reject it, warning that strict curbs would damage the economy and prosperity, as Swiss companies depend on foreign workers. The poll by newspaper group Tamedia/20 Minuten and released yesterday showed that 48 percent of the population plan to vote
‘HEART IS ACHING’: Lee appeared to baffle many when he said he had never heard of six South Koreans being held in North Korea, drawing criticism from the families South Korean President Lee Jae-myung yesterday said he was weighing a possible apology to North Korea over suspicions that his ousted conservative predecessor intentionally sought to raise military tensions between the war-divided rivals in the buildup to his brief martial law declaration in December last year. Speaking to reporters on the first anniversary of imprisoned former South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol’s ill-fated power grab, Lee — a liberal who won a snap presidential election following Yoon’s removal from office in April — stressed his desire to repair ties with Pyongyang. A special prosecutor last month indicted Yoon and two of his top
The Philippines deferred the awarding of a project that is part of a plan to build one of the world’s longest marine bridges after local opposition over the potential involvement of a Chinese company due to national security fears. The proposals are “undergoing thorough review” by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which acts as a lender and an overseer of the project to ensure it meets international environmental and governance standards, the Philippine Department of Public Works and Highways said in a statement on Monday in response to queries from Bloomberg. The agency said it would announce the winning bidder once ADB
RSS