Posted on 07/31/2008 1:02:48 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
BEIJING (AFP) - China on Thursday unveiled a string of emergency measures it was prepared to use in its battle to tame Beijing's stubborn smog ahead of the Olympics, as the city was again shrouded in haze.
Chinese authorities may close more factories, further reduce the number of cars on the road in the city and neighbouring areas, and stop all construction, the ministry of environmental protection said on its website.
"When there are extremely unfavourable weather conditions, there will be some emergency measures," the statement said.
Beijing has already taken drastic steps to reduce pollution, amid concerns expressed from as high up as International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge that the poor air quality could be detrimental to performance and health.
In the most dramatic anti-pollution measure, one million of the city's 3.3 million cars were taken off the roads from July 20, and more than 100 heavily polluting factories and building sites were closed down.
But after two days of marked improvement in the air and with little more than a week to go before the Games start, Beijing was once again blighted by a thick haze on Thursday, although foggy weather also played a part.
The emergency measures announced by the environment ministry would see around 460,000 more cars removed from Beijing's roads, according to the plans that were publicised widely in the state-run press on Thursday.
Another 222 factories would also be shut down in Beijing, neighbouring Hebei province and the nearby city of Tianjin.
Measures restricting traffic would also be extended to Tianjin and major cities in Hebei, the ministry said.
Further, there would be a ban on all construction activity, according to the statement.
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Don’t forget that China has started claiming that if their athletes test positive for banned performance drugs, its because they are being mistaken for natural chinese medicines.
China has been caught issuing modified passports with fake birthdates for athletes under the age of 16 so they can compete. One of the female gymnists was recently listed on a chinese athlete website as just turning 14 years old. IOC refuses to investigate.
China also had denied visas to the alternatives on the US female gymnastic team and are forcing them to wait in Japan during the games to try to influence the results of the competition they most covet the gold in. No other olympic athletes have been denied visas to enter the country but the heavily favored to win the gold US female gymnastics team.
I don't doubt the main point of your post... but I'd have to say that more Chinese are probably more into table-tennis than gymnastics. Gymnastics is higher profile globally, but if you ask a Chinese person which would be the bigger national shame, failing to hit gold in ping pong or in gymnastics, I'd bet a pizza that they'd pick the former.
What a pathetic joke but Greenpeace says that China is really improving!! All Commies get a pass.
Ping-pong might be a sentimental favorite, but the gymnastics competition, male and female, but especially female, is the premier event China covets for national pride over anything else at the olympics for many years now. Samething with the Russians. Everything revolves around their gymnist programs when it comes to the olympics. If the chinese don’t win the majority of the medals in the all-around and individual gymnatics events, they will consider the entire olympics a failure.
The chinese are very good in the diving competitions and a few other events, but when it comes to gymnastics, they take it to psychotic levels of national pride.
They are in a panic because the american squad of girls are considered even more talent thick than the gold-winning “magnificent seven” from the 1996 olympics.
Its four leading team members which include the #1 and #2 ranked females in the world: Shawn Johnson #1, Nastia Liukin #2, Chellsie Memmel and Alicia Sacramone have combined to win 25 medals in world competition and beat the Chinese at the worlds last year.
{chuckling, shaking head} What a freakin' disaster this whole circus has turned out to be...even before it has officially started.
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