Chinese cities choked by smog as pollution hits toxic levels

SCHOOLS have been disrupted, factories were shut and flights were cancelled as a blanket of pollution the size of Victoria smothered cities.

CHINA is on red alert after smog choked more than 20 cities.

Schools have been disrupted, factories were shut and flights cancelled as a blanket of pollution the size of Victoria smothered Beijing and more than 20 other cities.

According to Greenpeace East Asia, this is the most serious case of air pollution this year and is affecting a population equivalent to that of the US, Canada and Mexico combined.

The organisation said about 200 million people across six different provinces were suffering from hazardous levels of smog and another 260 million people were being exposed to heavy pollution.

“In the last 24 hours, a total of eight cities, including two provincial capitals, experienced off the charts pollution,” Greenpeace said in a statement.

Cities choked by the smog have China’s largest steel and coal industry clusters.

“The scale of the red alert measures show that the Chinese government is taking air pollution seriously,” climate and energy campaigner Doug Liansai said.

“However, the ongoing ‘airpocalypse’ is further evidence that China must implement far stricter limitations on coal consumption and accelerate the restructuring of the economy away from the heavily polluted sectors.”

A woman wearing a mask for protection against air pollution exercises in a residential complex shrouded with heavy smog in Handan in north China's Hebei province. Picture: Chinatopix Via AP

Children in some Chinese cities like Beijing and Shanghai and Hong Kong are growing up with asthma and other respiratory problems.

The air quality in the city does not meet World Health Organisation air quality guidelines, meaning there are serious risks to the public’s cardiovascular systems, cerebrovascular systems and it increases the probability of cancer and death.

There are both hazardous and heavy pollution warnings in China.

Heavy pollution is six times the World Health Organisations air quality guideline, while hazardous pollution is 10 times.

Greenpeace East Asia said on Monday the Ministry of Environmental Protection discovered some factories were violating the air pollution red alert measures and they were required to stop operations.

“Violations of emissions regulations are unacceptable,” Mr Liansai said.

“Violating factories must be strictly penalised, and repeat offenders should be placed on the government’s phase out list.”

Pollution levels in China on Monday, December 19. Picture: Greenpeace East Asia

The phase out list is an attempt for the Ministry of Industry and Information to shrink industrial overcapacity by phasing out poor performing industries.

Greenpeace predicts this December will continue to have worsening air quality, which will impact the Chinese over time.

It will lead to a weakened society, as the public is more likely to develop serious illnesses.

“Millions of people in China are breathing a hazardous cocktail of chemicals every day,” Greenpeace East Asia said.

“These chemicals are caused by coal-fired power plants, factories and vehicles, and are responsible for heart disease, stroke, respiratory illnesses, birth defects and cancer.”

China’s booming economy is to blame for the toxic increase in pollution, with new coal-fired power plants built in the country at a rapid rate.

Greenpeace said coal provided about 60 per cent of China’s electricity.

“While cars and trucks also contribute to air pollution in cities, it will be impossible to improve air quality in China without moving away from coal,” the organisation said.

“Coal burning is the biggest contributor of air pollution in Beijing and surrounding areas.”

A man wearing a mask visits a park amid heavy air pollution in Beijing. Picture: Wang Zhao/AFP

A number of children have been rushed to hospital with health concerns.

Local media reported hospitals were encountering a boom in patients, mostly children with respiratory problems.

Associated Press reported parents outside the Capital Pediatrics Institute on Tuesday were frustrated by the toxic environment.

“He is coughing and breathing short, and always feeling sputum in his throat,” father Du Renxin said about his two-year-old son.

Chinese media reports more than 150 flights have been cancelled at the Beijing Capital International Airport, as visibility fell at one point to 300 metres.

Parts of a highway circling Beijing, a city of 20 million, were also shut down and cars were warned to stay off the roads. Associated Press reports restaurants were even told to remove charcoal grills.

— with AP