China hit by another airpocalypse as air pollution cancer link confirmed

Cityscapes shrouded in thick smog have become a common scene inChina. Last winter, Beijing’s ‘airpocalypse‘ garnered headlines worldwide and generated much anger and debate within China. But this week, air pollution levels in the northeastern city of Harbin surpassed the previous record levels in Beijing. The city was essentially shut down after PM2.5, fine particulate pollutionthat is considered hazardous, reached levels of 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre – 40 times the safety level recommended by the World Health Organisation. Schools, motorways and an airport were closed on Tuesday as visibility in some areas of the city dropped to less than 10 metres.

Natural Disasters Keep People Poor

Natural disasters that have smacked Southeast Asia recently have killed scores of people and left severe damage in their wake. Recovery has begun, but the dent these events leave on the region’s economies could derail international efforts to eradicate poverty, according to a recent report that looks at how climate change and exposure to severe weather impact different countries.

“As temperatures warm, many of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable citizens will face increased risks associated with more intense or protracted droughts, extreme rainfall and heat waves,” notes the joint report by London-based think-tank the Overseas Development Institute, Met Office and Risk Management Solutions, a software company that helps reinsurers and other financial institutions to quantify and manage catastrophic risks.