By: Schuyler Ng
With the lockdown lifted in China, air pollution has already begun to rebound even exceeding the levels from the same time last year. According to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), “Air pollutant levels plummeted during the national lockdown in February, bottomed out in early March and have now overshot their pre-crisis levels” (CREA Study).
Source: CREA
This means that tiny particles called PM2.5, which are extremely dangerous to humans, are now up. In a report from China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), they have said that those particles were up about 3.1% in April. Most of the particles seem to be from industrial emissions as those industries have begun to open back up. A similar event has happened after the 2008 recession where industry collapsed but reopened and grew bigger than before which led to the “airpocalypse in 2012” where PM2.5 levels were 28 times the recommended safe daily level. Experts predict that the worst is yet to come especially for more urban cities like Beijing. They recommended that people continue working from home. Being the first country to go through the process, China’s recovery and reopening serves as a warning to other countries going through the same process. Experts predict that the rebound of emissions will become a trend and begin happening to countries all over the world.
Discussion Questions:
Should China focus on the health of their people or the health of their economy?
Do you think that other countries will follow in China’s path or make attempts at lowering the impacts of reopening?
Should China focus on the health of their people or the health of their economy?
ReplyDeleteI believe that if the economy is stable enough where the chinese government will not collapse, resources and focus should definitely be on the health of their people. As seen in why nations fall and other works we have analyzed and read, it is evident that the success of a country is heavily impacted by the citizens and their happiness. With incentive and trust in the government, the citizens will likely help rebuild the economy. Without the help of the people, there is no relationship between the citizens and the government. Therefore, if the chinese government puts its efforts right now into their people, in the future, the people will likely help rebuild the chinese economy.