外国人中的环境问题.doc

Chinas environmental crises seem to arise on a scale as sweeping and epic as the vast nation itself: Thousands of dead, bloated pigs floating down the river that supplies Shanghai with its drinking water. Air pollution in Beijing so impenetrable the U.S. Embassys air quality measuring station can only call it beyond index. Industrial towns where rates of cancer are so high theyre known as cancer villages. Compounding these problems is the Chinese governments stony silence about anything that might imperil the countrys economic development — including environmental regulation. But Chinas increasingly restive population of 1.3 billion people is now starting to demand government action to combat the deadly plagues of pollution and disease that are stalking the 21st centurys economic powerhouse. [The 10 Most Polluted Places on Earth] Chinese officials, however, have barely started to acknowledge the problem. In the meantime, the people of China are forced to face the following environmental catastrophes on a daily basis: Air pollution According to the Environmental Protection Agencys air quality scale, any pollution rating above 300 means the air is unsafe to breathe. Under these conditions, people should stay indoors with an air purifier running and remain as motionless as possible, according to U.S. Embassy Beijing guidelines. In January alone, there were 19 days when the index in Beijing surpassed that 300 threshold, according to the Washington Post, and readings above 500 are no longer unusual. On Jan. 12, the reading reached an eye-bleeding 886, comparable to living inside a smoking lounge. Manufacturing industries and Beijings 5 million-plus cars all contribute to the citys crippling air pollution, but most experts primarily blame the coal-burning electrical plants that power Chinas breakneck economic growth. China now burns 47 percent of the worlds coal, roughly equal to the amount used by all other countries of the world combined, the New York Times reports. An