The Dirtiest Airspace in the World

THE DIRTIEST AIRSPACE IN THE WORLD

By Anton Antonio

August 7, 2015

When we talk about China, the descriptive words that come to our minds are: (1) communism; (2) fake products; (3) land or sea grabber; (4) corruption; (5) synthetic foods; (6) bully; (7) huge population; (8) dog eaters, etc.  China is also known as the home of the only man-made structure that could be seen from outer space… the Great Wall.  But the Great Wall is now fast becoming invisible from outer space.  Why?  Because China is being covered by a gradually thickening cloud of smog (meaning: fog or haze combined with smoke and other atmospheric pollutants). 

The pollution woes of China are due to generic causes such as: (a) land use conversion; (b) overpopulation; and, (c) heavy dependence to fossil fuels such as coal.  Together with the Unites States, China is one of the leading patrons to the world’s carbon footprint.  And as we now know, atmospheric carbon is the primary cause of global warming and climate change.

(It’s a sad note that the United States and China have awaken to the sad realities of coal as an economy driver but an environmental scourge.  I’m just wondering why our own energy expert and planners are encouraging the use of coal to bridge the energy requirement in the Philippines.  One such project is the Coal Power Plant in Palawan.  I really cannot understand this until now.)

Worried that the impacts of climate change will be felt primarily by China, their energy and climate experts and planners have decided to adopt a 2-point strategy --- First, they are working to aggressively take market share from coal and accelerate the transition to low-carbon and zero-carbon sources such as natural gas, nuclear, wind power, solar power, and hydropower.  Second, on the industrial side, they are transitioning away from coal-intensive and energy-intensive industries that have been driving growth and speeding up the transition to a more balanced economy, with much more service sector growth.

These strategies are designed to move China away from another gained achievement… that she has the dirtiest airspace in the world.

Thoughts to promote positive action…

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REFERENCE:

Climateprogress (2015). “Global Coal Boom Ends as China and World Wakes Up to Reality of Carbon Pollution”.  Retrieved on August 7, 2015 from http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/07/24/3679682/coal-boom-ends-china/