Factories forced to halt production as PM2.5 reaches 250
Authorities in Beijing announced on Sunday that the city's air pollution alert has been upgraded from yellow to orange - the highest smog alert of the year - and industrial plants are required to reduce or shut down production.
According to the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center, Sunday's daily pollution reading showed that the air was "very hazardously polluted" and that the concentration of airborne particles smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter - PM2.5 - reached 250 micrograms per cubic meter in six districts of Beijing.
High humidity, strong thermal inversion and low wind speed are among the disadvantageous meteorological conditions preventing pollutants' dispersion, the Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau explained on Sunday.
Hazardous air pollution conditions will last until Tuesday, when a cold front is due to arrive, according to the Beijing's environmental protection bureau.
Beijing issued a yellow alert on Friday, requiring industrial plants to reduce or shut down production and forcing building and demolition at construction sites to stop.
Under an orange alert like that issued Sunday, apart from the suspension of production at industrial plants, construction sites are also required to halt the transportation of materials and waste, and heavy-duty trucks are banned from the roads.
According to the National Meteorological Center (NMC), several regions in North China - including the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin as well as Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces - have been plagued by smog from Sunday to Monday.
The NMC announced the dispatch of inspection teams to several cities to reinforce violations checks, such as those involving discharge from coal-fired and industrial plants, outdoor barbecues and the burning of stubble fields.
The inspection groups will also supervise local governments' initiation of heavy pollution emergency plans and will inspect their efforts to battle air pollution, including the removal of heavily-polluting vehicles and dust pollution control at construction sites.
According to the NMC, any entity that fails to make a full effort to implement air pollution control policies will be held accountable.
The NMC also warned the public to take protective measures when engaging in outdoor activities and advised those who suffer from respiratory diseases to stay indoors.
The heavy pollution has induced many residents to wear masks over the weekend, and Net users joked that residents in North China are "waiting for the wind" to bring back a clear sky.
China has a four-tier color-coded air pollution warning system, in which red represents the most severe pollution conditions, followed by orange, yellow and blue.
