The air quality in Hong Kong is one of the worst in the world, however a large percentage of the smog in Hong Kong comes from coal-fired power plants located in mainland China.
Because of the pollution from China, Hong Kong residents bear the conaequences from the smog. It isnt uncommon to walk through Hong Kong and see people wearing masks as a sort of filtering device. During the days when China increases the output of its coal powered power plants and the wind blows South, the smog in Hong Kong is considerably as can be seen during the morning cnn broadcasts.
As a result of the air pollution, cardiovascular health issues have increase, and more money is spent on medical care. Even stock investors are beginning to be repelled by the pollution in Hong Kong.
The relationship between China and Hong Kong is a good example of a transnational pollution event.
I was actually thinking of the same example for transnational pollution! Has Hong Kong ever imposed any safety measures and policies to help lessen the pollution coming in from the mainland? I liked how you used the CNN morning broadcasts to give an image of how bad the smog is.
ReplyDeleteThat is a very good point about smog from China's pollution overflowing into Hong Kong. I think another big factor that contributes to the high levels of air pollution the cars in China. There is a large number of cars in China and the number is still increasing rapidly. The fact that these car are the leftover's from car companies that aren't allowed to sell them in America due to the demand for low carbon emissions is causing a synergic effect with the pollution.
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