The World Health Organization (WHO) told residents of China's capital, Beijing, to stay indoors as the city faces its sixth day of reaching dangerous air pollution levels.
The WHO also urged the Chinese government to take further steps in alleviating the problem of pollution and in improving the air quality for its people. As of Tuesday, the PM2.5 levels recorded in Beijing's air reached an alarming 452 micrograms per cubic meter in just a matter of 24 hours. PM2.5 is the collective term used to describe tiny and harmful air pollutants present in the atmosphere. The readings were from the U.S Embassy stationed at Beijing. This level is 18 times higher than the level considered as safe by the WHO.
The onset of this heavy air pollution started last week and since then, the government has been doing some steps to mitigate the situation. The country's National Meteorological Center already raised the orange alert level, the second-most severe air pollution alert under the new system which was implemented October of last year.
The orange alert level required all establishments to decrease their emissions by 30 percent and the temporary suspension of all construction work. Children and the elderly were asked to remain inside their homes and those who must go outside were encouraged to leave their cars and use the city's public transportation services.
WHO's chief in China, Bernhard Schwartländer stated that he is worried about the country's growing problem regarding air pollution. "There is no easy solution," Dr. Schwartländer told the Wall Street Journal as to what the government can do to eradicate the problem. He also said that officials from the WHO are in constant communication with Chinese authorities and the two are coordinating in identifying the most feasible and effective solution to the problem.
During a conference at Beijing, Li Junfeng, director general of the National Center for Climate Change Strategy and International Cooperation, was quoted saying, "China's pollution is at an unbearable stage. It's like a smoker who needs to quit smoking at once otherwise he will risk getting lung cancer."
A light gray mist hovers over Beijing and WHO officials stated that rising pollution levels is very harmful to human health. However, they stated that air pollution could not be directly linked to the cases of lung cancer and other respiratory diseases reported by the local media.
