Beijing Sees Worst Sandstorm In A Decade

On Monday, a sandstorm swept through China’s capital city of Beijing, canceling flights and impacting the health of residents. Beijing hasn’t had a sandstorm at this level in ten years. Massive buildings were clouded in the thick dust while traffic was clogged in the major city.

The Associated Press reports that over 400 flights out of both of the city’s main airports were canceled due to a lack of visibility and the intensity of the winds. NBC News reports that The Beijing Meteorological Observatory told children and older adults to avoid going outside. They also said that anyone who has a health condition that affects their respiratory system should stay inside, as well. If people in the city must venture out of their residences, the center said that they should wear coverings over their face to repel the dust and wash their faces when they get home.

Flora Zou is a Beijing resident who works in the fashion industry. She told Reuters, “It looks like the end of the world…In this kind of weather I really, really don’t want to be outside.”

According to AP reporting, “The National Meteorological Center said Monday’s storm had developed in the Gobi Desert in the Inner Mongolia Region, where schools had been advised to close and bus service added to reduce residents’ exposure to the harsh conditions.”

The weather isn’t uncommon for the area during this time of year, although conditions have improved in recent years. The deserts to the west blow the wind east, sometimes reaching all the way to Japan. There have been attempts around the country to mitigate the effect of the sandstorms by planting foliage in order to offset the intensity. Reuters reports that Beijing constructed a “great green wall” in order not only to capture dust before it affects the area, but also to manufacture passages where wind can push through particles at a faster pace. However, cities and industrialization have also expanded in recent years which has reportedly affected the environment of the country. “With its mix of desert and grassy steppe, Inner Mongolia is particularly prone to extreme weather resulting from resource exploitation,” AP reports.

The National Meteorological Center said that the sand and dust in the area would continue to impact 12 provinces and regions. The areas affected would reportedly span from the far northwest area of Xinjiang to northeastern Heilongjiang and the eastern city of Tianjin on the coast.

“This is the most intense sandstorm weather our country has seen in 10 years, as well as it covering the broadest area,” the center wrote in a post on its website.

China’s pollution has been a rising concern as it continues to affect the health of citizens. A study by the Health Effects Institute found that pollution in China resulted in around 1.42 million premature deaths in 2019.

Last year, President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, promised that China would achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. He also stated that China would quicken the process of reducing its emissions. China reportedly tops the list as the world’s heaviest polluting country. Xi did not specify how China would reach these goals, but told the United Nations General Assembly at the time, “Humankind can no longer afford to ignore the repeated warnings of nature.”

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