In Beijing, Gray Is the New Orange

Take a look at the above photo. In Beijing, this is what orange looks like.

China’s capital on Friday raised its color-coded warning system for air pollution to orange from yellow for the first time since establishing it in October. The system’s  four color-coded alerts, in order of increasing yuckiness, include blue, yellow, orange and red.

Beijing worked up to its orange alert. The city’s Ministry of Environmental Protection on Thursday issued a yellow alert for only the second time since October, according to the official Xinhua news agency. A yellow alert is issued when city authorities either forecast an air-quality index of above 300 for the next 24 hours or an AQI of between 201 and 300 for the next three days or more.

What is 300 like? Well, take a look at that photo again, taken Friday morning from a flight into Beijing. China Real Time kept the kids out of school and noted how days like this always make our hands feel dirty.

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By comparison, the AQI in hardly sylvan New York as of this writing was 70 , which is considered “moderate.” The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says an index of above 300 is “extremely rare” in the U.S. and typically occurs during events such as forest fires.

Issuing an orange alert is a complicated affair. It is used only when authorities forecast an AQI of above 200 for at least three consecutive days, with at least one day above 300.

Chinese government air-monitoring stations recorded an average AQI reading of 302 on Friday night, while a similar station at the U.S. embassy showed a reading of 378. Beijing’s AQI rose above 300 on Thursday and remained near or above that level on Friday.

The China Meteorological Administration and the Ministry of Environmental Protection issued a joint weather and pollution forecast for the first time on Thursday. The agencies said the northern Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, along with midwestern region of Shandong province, will experience AQI readings of above 300 from Friday to Sunday.

When an orange alert is issued, authorities require workers to halt construction and order factories to temporarily reduce emissions by 30%. Fireworks and outdoor barbecuing is also banned. Children and the elderly are advised to stay indoors, and residents are encouraged to use public transportation instead of cars.

Beijing’s municipal government has been taking measures to fight air pollution amid growing public pressure. The city ratified a long-term plan in January that sets limits on air pollutants for the first time and imposes higher fines on polluters, although it scrapped some of the plan’s harsher penalties at the last minute.

The city in October adopted an emergency-response plan for air pollution that includes implementing alternate driving days for cars with even- and odd-numbered license plates during a red alert. That alert, however, will be issued only when authorities forecast an AQI of above 300 for at least three consecutive days.

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