A student covers his nose and mouth with a facial mask. China was shrouded in choking smog throughout the first week of 2017. (Photo/CGTN)
A new year, but no fresher air. China was shrouded in choking smog throughout the first week of 2017. Air quality began to sink as 2016 approached its end, spoiling celebrations in the northern part of the country. And on Sunday, the southern province of Guangdong also surrendered to the pollution.
Alarms are raised ever more regularly by local authorities to warn about the health threat, which consists mainly of PM2.5, a particle which can be breathed in and thus a vehicle for airborne diseases.
People living in the affected areas have been on edge. The unease seems to have reached a new level, with many taking to China's social networks to question the government's attempts to tackle the issue.
Sensing the discontent, the central and local governments soon responded by pledging more measures to clean China's air.
'GRUMPY INTERNET'
"The smog is an 'equalizer' now," @Everythinghaschanged commented wryly on WeChat, China's most popular messaging APP. "The same air is breathed in by both the common and the privileged."
Chinese social networks have become ever more infused with cynicism, panic and discontent expressed by people whose lives are frequently disrupted by the recurring air pollution.
Panic has led to rumors and speculation. Stories from unknown or suspicious sources have also been widely shared on the social networks by people who are desperate to get to the bottom of where exactly the smog has come from and how to combat the unhealthy air.
One article that stirred the public online but was later rebutted by experts claimed that "imported petroleum tar" was to blame for contaminating the air.
The cynicism and complaints soon developed into criticism of government efforts to deal with the problem, especially as the heavy smog lingered.
In Beijing, a city which is rarely spared any smog attack, parents raced to sign an online petition demanding schools and kindergartens be equipped with air purifiers.
Some parents have taken their own smog detectors to schools in order to prove their cases.
