I try not to think too much about pollution and air quality while living here. And for the most part it's pretty easy to ignore, because there are still sunny days when you can marvel at the clear, blue sky. The news reports are also so inundated with terrible climate and pollution issues in China that you can reassure yourself, "at least I'm not living in Beijing."
But then there are some days you finally have to acknowledge that the air quality can be pretty bad here. This past week, the harbor was a soupy gray, with buildings in Kowloon barely distinguishable, and the sunshine had a hazy, fuzzy quality to it.
And on those days, I think about all the tankers idling in the harbor, wheezing out gallons upon gallons of diesel fuel and exhaust; all the taxis, screeching up the hills and accelerating and braking with wild abandon; all the old, lumbering trucks, guzzling their way around town; all the skyscrapers, trapping in the pollutants and creating the equivalent of a modern day dust bowl.
And then I wonder about my eyeballs and my lungs, and I feel a little worried. It's hard to tell when one should be really worried.
But then there are some days you finally have to acknowledge that the air quality can be pretty bad here. This past week, the harbor was a soupy gray, with buildings in Kowloon barely distinguishable, and the sunshine had a hazy, fuzzy quality to it.
And on those days, I think about all the tankers idling in the harbor, wheezing out gallons upon gallons of diesel fuel and exhaust; all the taxis, screeching up the hills and accelerating and braking with wild abandon; all the old, lumbering trucks, guzzling their way around town; all the skyscrapers, trapping in the pollutants and creating the equivalent of a modern day dust bowl.
And then I wonder about my eyeballs and my lungs, and I feel a little worried. It's hard to tell when one should be really worried.
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