Environment     

PM2.5 hits 390mg in smog-bound Shanghai

Shanghai Daily, December 27, 2013

• Peaking at 390 micrograms per cubic meter, more than five times the nation’s limit of 75, yesterday’s density of hazardous PM2.5 particles remained at a high level, contributing to Shanghai’s heavy pollution, the city’s environment watchdog said.

  People wear masks while chatting on the Bund with the financial zone of Lujiazui barely visible across the Huangpu River during a hazy day in downtown Shanghai yesterday.

  Due to the arrival of pollutants from north, the PM2.5 density soared to 300 micrograms by 7am from the 120 micrograms recorded at 4am, and the figure continued to rise throughout the afternoon.

  The World Health Organization’s safety guideline is 25 micrograms.

  As for the larger PM10, its concentration kept growing overnight and hit about 500 micrograms at 4pm, triple the nation’s 150 microgram limit and 10 times the density considered safe by WHO of 50 micrograms.

  The city’s average air quality index over 24 hours reached its peak at 6pm with a reading of 287, indicating heavy pollution, while Qingpu District recorded an AQI of 339, or severely polluted.

  The Shanghai Meteorological Bureau issued a yellow haze alert at 7:41am for the lingering smog obscuring the city’s skyline. The haze cut visibility in most districts to just 3 kilometers.

  But the bureau is expecting relief from the smog this morning. Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Center forecast that today’s air quality would be good with an AQI of between 70 and 95.

  Today will see a mix of drizzle and light snow in some areas. Temperatures will hover between 0 and 4 degrees Celsius and drop to minus 1 tomorrow in downtown areas

  In suburban areas, temperatures could be as low as minus 3 degrees today with black ice on the roads.

  Tomorrow’s temperatures could be as low as minus 4.

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