Blue Skies Over Beijing?

Beijing has completed its fourth day of experimental air pollution testing by taking 1.3 million cars temporarily off the road. The state-run news agency, Xinhua, proclaims the test a success with four "blue-sky days". But the lingering smog tells a different story.

As does some of the world's best endurance athletes competing in a test cycling event in Beijing over the weekend. Oenone Wood, an Australian cyclist in town for the event, said she had a difficult time seeing the surrounding scenery as she past by due to the lingering smog. Many athletes have expressed concerns that the heavy air pollution will affect their health during the games.

By temporarily side-lining about one third of Beijing's cars, Chinese officials have stated that there was an improvement in air quality such as lower NOx levels. However, the Chinese pollution rating system does not take into account the measurement of fine particulate matter and ozone levels. Both of these toxic pollutants can negatively impact health and seriously effect athletes performance during the upcoming 2008 Olympics.

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Reuters
China View
The Canberra Times

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