China’s pollution...what’s the solution?

Much has been shared in the news about China’s pollution levels, which broke records in December of last year. On days when it is bad, visibility is minimal, planes are grounded, you can taste it in the air and are advised not to go outside or do any exercise that might cause you to breathe more than normal.In an attempt to convince the country that the pollution is not as bad as everyone thinks, Chinese State Media channel CCTV surprised and outraged the nation when they ran an online commentary highlighting ‘5 surprising benefits’ of the pollution, they were:It unifies Chinese peopleIt makes China more equal (in terms of wealth)It raises citizen awarenessChinese people are funnier when they contend with deadly smogThe haze makes Chinese people more knowledgeable

The comments were soon removed but you can find out more about what CCTV said in this International Business Times article. Another article in the IB Times shared how one State newspaper claimed the pollution is actually an advantageous military defensive that can protect against missile attacks…I feel safer now.

However, in the words of Tyrese Gibson, famous for singing “Always Coca-Cola” on a bus (remember the advert?) and for being a movie star, “Excuses always sound best to the person making them up!”… So if you want solutions not excuses, Mother Nature Network has provided 9 ways China can work on improving the smog problem, they are:

1. Speed up the adoption of electric cars
2. Introduce car sharing schemes
3. Publish data on pollution levels
4. Invest further in clean energy
5. Further increase the use of electric bikes
6. Support new urbanism
7. Better (cleaner) cooking stoves
8. Push energy efficiency
9. Shuttering of inefficient factories

(MNN article here)

Image source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-12-20/heavy-pollution-returns-in-shanghai-after-week-of-improved-skies.html