Pollution still hangs in the air
2008-07-27 20:03
Beijing - The Chinese capital was shrouded in a thick, gray haze of pollution on Sunday, just 12 days before the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games.
One expert warned that drastic measures enacted to cut vehicle and factory emissions in the city were no guarantee skies would be clear during competitions.
The pollution was among the worst seen in Beijing in the past month, despite traffic restrictions enacted a week ago that removed half of the city's vehicles from roads.
Visibility was less than one kilometre in some places. During the opening ceremony of the Athletes' Village on Sunday, the housing complex was invisible from the nearby main Olympic Green.
The city's notoriously polluted air is one of the biggest question marks hanging over the games, which begin on August 8.
On Sunday, temperatures of about 32°C, with 70% humidity and low winds, created a soupy mix of harmful chemicals, particulate matter and water vapour.
'Unhealthy for sensitive groups'
The Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau said the air was "unhealthy for sensitive groups".
Athletes have been trickling into Beijing are were expected to begin arriving in large numbers this week, though some were headed to South Korea, Japan and other places to avoid Beijing's air for as long as possible.
Some Olympic delegations, including the US Olympic Committee, are making protective masks available to their athletes.
Jacques Rogge, president of the IOC, has warned that outdoor endurance events will be postponed if the air quality is poor.
The world's greatest distance runner, Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia, has decided not to run the marathon event because the city's pollution irritates his breathing.
- AP