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Mea culpa on smog first step in fixing it
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When I first inhaled dusty air in Shanghai in 2004, I was really worried. Now I choke in smog that’s much worse, and yet I am not that worried.
The difference is that back in 2004 I had little confidence that Shanghai would fix the air pollution problem any time soon, but I am confident that this time will be different.
About a decade ago, I had just relocated from Beijing to Shanghai and celebrated my escape from sandstorms that often preyed upon the capital city. Shanghai at that time was much better than Beijing in terms of air quality.
But one day, Shanghai was suddenly shrouded in dust, leading many people, including myself, to believe that it was an spill-over of northern sandstorms. There was not much official explanation of where the dust really came from.
And there was no official notion of “a beautiful China.” Growth still came before environmental protection, and I feared Shanghai would become another Beijing in no time.
Now, even with recurrent smog this winter, Shanghai still fares better than Beijing in terms of overall air quality.
And, I take heart most in the fact that the Shanghai government has frankly admitted that local carbon footprints, mainly from traffic and industry, contribute to 80 percent of the city’s pollution. Only 20 percent of the city’s pollution — smogs in particular — can be blamed on other regions.
In a December 10 report, Xinhua also acknowledged that rapid urbanization since the 1970s has slowed the ground speeds of wind in Shanghai year on year, so much so that smog has enveloped the city more often in autumn and winter.
Candid acknowledgment
The city’s candid acknowledgment of its self-made problems deserves praise. In contrast to the city government’s candor, I found that many locals, especially taxi drivers, still believe that Shanghai’s recurrent smog this winter is spill over from the north.
“Shanghai has a constant number of cars and factories, why is our air fresh in summer but foul in winter?” a middle-aged taxi driver challenged me two weeks ago as I told him that the city admitted that the municipality itself was mainly to blame for the latest rounds of smog.
I explained to him with great patience: “In summer, winds are strong, so our pollution is easily blown away, but in autumn and winter, the same amount of pollutants cannot so easily be swept away since the winds are weaker.” He blinked in disbelief. “It must come from the north and other poorer regions.”
In fact, that was the widespread attitude before the city government made the rare acknowledgement on December 10 that the city’s own pollution was the biggest culprit.
On December 26, the city government further acknowledged that dust from construction sites and emissions from cars and trucks still pollute the city.
Confucius said: “It’s courageous for one to shame oneself.” If we blame others for our pollution, we may never fix it. Now that the Shanghai government has the courage to “shame itself,” I won’t worry as much as I did in 2004.
Shanghai’s air pollution, and the nation’s for that matter, has worsened to a tipping point now.
I believe things will change for the better, now that we know what’s wrong.
On December 26, Shanghai officials said the city’s air pollution will be reduced by 20 percent in the next five years. If Shanghai didn’t see its own problems, I would be very afraid this time.
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