Asthma can be a very expensive and problematic condition to deal with. An air purifier can help to eliminate allergenic particles or toxic contaminants from the air. When used inside your home, an air purifier can help make the air that you and your family breathe cleaner. This is one of the reasons, a person with Asthma could be in the market for a new air purifier, if not now then in the future. I personally have two Austin Air Filters in my own home to help with Allergies.
If you are going to buy an air purifier, most people do not know what to look for. The first thing most individuals look at is price, but this can be misleading. Just because it is cheap only means you will get what you pay for. If you want a cheap air filter, you will have one. First, look at the Austin Air Filter because this is one of the top types on the market because it is rated HEPA.
It is a High Efficiency Particulate Air Purifier so, make your comparisons to this brand. I personally use the Austin Jr with Carbon/Zeolite media for the HEPA filtration. This is an all purpose type of air cleaner which does a great job.
It is important that you look for an air purifier with HEPA Filtration. HEPA Filtration, although they are considered expensive, are often the best performing. This is because HEPA air filters must meet specific regulations of the Department of Energy and are tested to receive the High Efficiency Particulate Air Certification. These regulations, which are imposed by the Department of Energy, are the main reason that High Efficiency Particulate Air Cleaners are considered the most successful at removing harmful air particles.
When you have the opportunity, it is important to read online reviews of multiple air purifiers.
These reviews will help give you inside information on the use and maintenance of different brands. Even though product reviews are important, you are also advised to do your own research, as well as use your common sense. Some of these reviews sites are not really real reviews but sites set up to make money off of consumers. Read between the lines and look at a minimum of ten site reviews. Call some of the dealers and talk to the technical people, they will tell you the information you are looking for.
In conclusion, asthma is tough to deal with. An air purifier can help eliminate particles that you could be allergic to. A High Efficiency Particulate Air rated filter is the best you can buy and it has to perform according to the Department of Energy Standards. Price is important but so is your health and peace of mind. If you are under the care of a Doctor for your health, be sure to check with your Physician before making any decision regarding any type of Air Filter purchase.
2011年12月29日星期四
Law dysfunctional in face of unimaginable disaster
The government panel's interim report said plans laid out by the Nuclear Disaster Special Measures Law did not function properly because the scale of the disaster was unimaginable.
According to the law, in the event of a nuclear disaster an off-site headquarters is to be established near the nuclear power plant where the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency can gather information with representatives of local governments.
However, because local governments were overwhelmed dealing with the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, of the six towns surrounding the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant only Okumamachi sent a representative to the headquarters.
On March 15, following explosions at the plant's Nos. 1 and 3 reactors, and with the No. 2 reactor in a hazardous condition, radiation measurements inside the headquarters reached 200 microsieverts per hour, forcing the office to relocate to Fukushima city.
Early that morning, the nuclear safety agency had faxed the headquarters, advising them to administer stabilized iodine to prevent the accumulation of radioactive iodine in workers' bodies. But in the confusion surrounding the relocation to Fukushima, nobody noticed the fax until the evening.
The headquarters, which was only five kilometers from the nuclear plant, was not equipped with an air purifier to protect against radiation. This had been pointed out in 2009 by the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, but the nuclear agency said such equipment was not necessary. "Radioactive substances would only be in the air for a short time. Just turning off the ventilation system is enough," they said.
The confusion was largely because a multihazard disaster involving a nuclear crisis and natural calamities was not foreseen. However, the 2007 Niigata Chuetsu Offshore Earthquake had provided a forewarning.
The Niigata quake damaged Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear power station, and the nuclear safety agency began conducting an investigation.
However, local governments opposed this probe, saying that if a claim was made that the earthquake caused the nuclear accident, the public would be overly apprehensive. The agency then concluded, "There is virtually no possibility that a natural disaster could cause a nuclear disaster," and the probe was terminated.
Niigata Prefecture in 2010 devised a training plan that anticipated such complex disasters, which was revised and approved by the safety agency. Regarding such training, the report said, "Disaster drills that take into account the unique aspects of nuclear accidents should be conducted regularly, with full participation of local residents."
According to the law, in the event of a nuclear disaster an off-site headquarters is to be established near the nuclear power plant where the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency can gather information with representatives of local governments.
However, because local governments were overwhelmed dealing with the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, of the six towns surrounding the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant only Okumamachi sent a representative to the headquarters.
On March 15, following explosions at the plant's Nos. 1 and 3 reactors, and with the No. 2 reactor in a hazardous condition, radiation measurements inside the headquarters reached 200 microsieverts per hour, forcing the office to relocate to Fukushima city.
Early that morning, the nuclear safety agency had faxed the headquarters, advising them to administer stabilized iodine to prevent the accumulation of radioactive iodine in workers' bodies. But in the confusion surrounding the relocation to Fukushima, nobody noticed the fax until the evening.
The headquarters, which was only five kilometers from the nuclear plant, was not equipped with an air purifier to protect against radiation. This had been pointed out in 2009 by the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, but the nuclear agency said such equipment was not necessary. "Radioactive substances would only be in the air for a short time. Just turning off the ventilation system is enough," they said.
The confusion was largely because a multihazard disaster involving a nuclear crisis and natural calamities was not foreseen. However, the 2007 Niigata Chuetsu Offshore Earthquake had provided a forewarning.
The Niigata quake damaged Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear power station, and the nuclear safety agency began conducting an investigation.
However, local governments opposed this probe, saying that if a claim was made that the earthquake caused the nuclear accident, the public would be overly apprehensive. The agency then concluded, "There is virtually no possibility that a natural disaster could cause a nuclear disaster," and the probe was terminated.
Niigata Prefecture in 2010 devised a training plan that anticipated such complex disasters, which was revised and approved by the safety agency. Regarding such training, the report said, "Disaster drills that take into account the unique aspects of nuclear accidents should be conducted regularly, with full participation of local residents."
2011年12月28日星期三
Russ Choka created what we all yearn for – a place of community
On Friday, Russ Choka was laid to his rest, a much-deserved one. The gray skies reflected the somber mood at the morning vigil outside his restaurant, later at his funeral in the cathedral and finally at his grave in the Catholic cemetery.
So what was it then? Homage to Mr. Choka or simply that old familiar craving for a coney dog that drove us downtown three nights before Christmas? I don't know, but whatever it was when we pulled into the last space in the darkened parking lot, it was evident we were not alone. The place was jam-packed!
We stumbled through the back door, down the steps, through the kitchen, past the stove with the huge pots and the counter with tubs of dirty dishes into the restaurant, where we joined half of Fort Wayne. There was no room at this inn. We latecomers huddled together at the front and rear entrances of the old-timey establishment, eyeing the crowded tables, wondering “how long,” eager for our chance at the trough.
I'm telling you, that blazing Santa Claus sign was the slickest promotion Choka ever devised, shooting his revenue through the roof every December.
There were big-bellied Steelers fans chomping down dogs. Small shepherds and wise men with their worn-out parents chomping down dogs. Hot-shot high-schoolers in letter jackets with their girlfriends, businessmen, a woman in a fur coat, the ragged, the rich, the young and the old, all chomping down dogs. Why, it was “weinermania”! A fat baby in a high chair with a hot dog in one hand and pacifier in the other. An 89-year-old Leo Lion retelling the tale of his 1940 championship season when the whole team celebrated at this very establishment.
Knowledge handed down from one generation to the next is a beautiful thing to behold, and I watched as a doting grandfather hoisted his little angel onto a barstool at the counter. It took the child three seconds flat to discover the mystery of the motion of the swiveling stool, as she looked up in gratitude at her grandpa.
It had now been almost 10 hours since the vigil, and still the exhausted staff displayed a professionalism that would put the high-class joints in town to shame. In their soiled aprons and sweaty T-shirts proclaiming “Our buns are steamed,” I observed as they smiled patiently doing their best to satisfy all comers, sorting out Rubik's-cube orders — “Twenty- one coneys, nine with mustard, four without, five no onion.”
Thank heavens, a righteous man in a dark suit and tie, obviously straight from the church, was helping out, acting as maitre'd and busboy, alternately wiping tables and his brow.
Soon it was our turn to be seated, and in just an instant, like magic, our chili and coney dogs were placed before us. Gloria in the highest! Those dogs are the world's best!
Confirmed by the neon “World Famous Coney” sign blinking back in the window, I surveyed the scene. Only Norman Rockwell could have captured the magnitude of the neighborliness — friends sharing tall tales, strangers invited to pull up a chair, the laughter, the hugs, the “Merry Christmases”…
It was then I spotted her looking down on all of us — Mary with her baby, on a memorial blanket hung on a wall at the far end. Now my husband thinks I'm goofy, tearing up at the most inappropriate times, but honestly, that did it — that and the knowledge that Choka had chopped 50 pounds of onions seven days a week for more than 50 years!
And in that instant I knew why the place was packed, why business was booming, why the children would bring their children. The recipe was simple. With a humble hotdog, a spoonful of sauce and a fresh bun, Russ Choka had created what we all yearn for: a place of community.
So what was it then? Homage to Mr. Choka or simply that old familiar craving for a coney dog that drove us downtown three nights before Christmas? I don't know, but whatever it was when we pulled into the last space in the darkened parking lot, it was evident we were not alone. The place was jam-packed!
We stumbled through the back door, down the steps, through the kitchen, past the stove with the huge pots and the counter with tubs of dirty dishes into the restaurant, where we joined half of Fort Wayne. There was no room at this inn. We latecomers huddled together at the front and rear entrances of the old-timey establishment, eyeing the crowded tables, wondering “how long,” eager for our chance at the trough.
I'm telling you, that blazing Santa Claus sign was the slickest promotion Choka ever devised, shooting his revenue through the roof every December.
There were big-bellied Steelers fans chomping down dogs. Small shepherds and wise men with their worn-out parents chomping down dogs. Hot-shot high-schoolers in letter jackets with their girlfriends, businessmen, a woman in a fur coat, the ragged, the rich, the young and the old, all chomping down dogs. Why, it was “weinermania”! A fat baby in a high chair with a hot dog in one hand and pacifier in the other. An 89-year-old Leo Lion retelling the tale of his 1940 championship season when the whole team celebrated at this very establishment.
Knowledge handed down from one generation to the next is a beautiful thing to behold, and I watched as a doting grandfather hoisted his little angel onto a barstool at the counter. It took the child three seconds flat to discover the mystery of the motion of the swiveling stool, as she looked up in gratitude at her grandpa.
It had now been almost 10 hours since the vigil, and still the exhausted staff displayed a professionalism that would put the high-class joints in town to shame. In their soiled aprons and sweaty T-shirts proclaiming “Our buns are steamed,” I observed as they smiled patiently doing their best to satisfy all comers, sorting out Rubik's-cube orders — “Twenty- one coneys, nine with mustard, four without, five no onion.”
Thank heavens, a righteous man in a dark suit and tie, obviously straight from the church, was helping out, acting as maitre'd and busboy, alternately wiping tables and his brow.
Soon it was our turn to be seated, and in just an instant, like magic, our chili and coney dogs were placed before us. Gloria in the highest! Those dogs are the world's best!
Confirmed by the neon “World Famous Coney” sign blinking back in the window, I surveyed the scene. Only Norman Rockwell could have captured the magnitude of the neighborliness — friends sharing tall tales, strangers invited to pull up a chair, the laughter, the hugs, the “Merry Christmases”…
It was then I spotted her looking down on all of us — Mary with her baby, on a memorial blanket hung on a wall at the far end. Now my husband thinks I'm goofy, tearing up at the most inappropriate times, but honestly, that did it — that and the knowledge that Choka had chopped 50 pounds of onions seven days a week for more than 50 years!
And in that instant I knew why the place was packed, why business was booming, why the children would bring their children. The recipe was simple. With a humble hotdog, a spoonful of sauce and a fresh bun, Russ Choka had created what we all yearn for: a place of community.
2011年12月27日星期二
Chinese turn to U.S. for clarity in smog data
The Beijing smog often keeps Zhushen Zhenyu trapped at home, on his mother’s orders, when he’d rather be playing basketball outside, but the 8-year-old still hopes for a silver lining in the clouds of pollution choking China’s capital.
“When will the air quality be so bad we don’t have to go to school?” he asked a city official one recent smoggy day.
“That depends on government policy,” was the cryptic reply of Li Yunting, an engineer at the Beijing Environmental Monitoring Center, which opened to public visits last month.
The doubts about official pollution data keep piling up for China’s government, as green activists, celebrity bloggers and ordinary citizens increasingly demand action and information to halt the environmental fall-out from decades of breakneck economic growth.
Burning coal is largely responsible for the oppressive smog, which the United Nations has rated the worst in the world. China has more than doubled its coal consumption in the past 10 years but has not kept pace with the clean-air technology found in the West. It also relies on cheaper forms of coal that emit more pollutants, and Beijing’s nearly 5 million cars do not generally meet the standards of the USA.
The past two months have been dire. The high incidence of heavy air pollution has sent many residents rushing to buy face masks, air purifiers and household plants believed to clean dirty air.
The haze has highlighted discrepancies between the government’s robustly sunny statistics and the far scarier numbers recorded and issued by the U.S. Embassy here. Beijing described the air pollution as “light” on December 4, a smog-filled day that forced the city airport, the world’s second busiest, to cancel hundreds of flights because of poor visibility. The embassy reading was “beyond index,” literally off the measurement charts that stop at “hazardous.”
The embassy measurements, begun in 2008 and issued hourly via Twitter, use a standard employed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to measure tiny airborne particles, such as soot from burning gas in cars, that are under 2.5 micrometers in diameter.
Experts consider these particles most damaging to human health, as they are small enough to penetrate the lungs and blood, potentially causing lung cancer and other diseases.
China publishes figures using a standard that measures coarser particular matter such as dust and keeps secret, for internal research, the measurements of smaller particles its scientists collect.
Despite the Chinese government’s blocking of Twitter, the U.S. Embassy figures are widely circulated in Beijing on Chinese websites or microblogs. In recent weeks, celebrity bloggers such as real estate mogul Pan Shiyi and children’s author Zheng Yuanjie have pressured Chinese officials to give a more accurate picture of air quality.
Yu Ping, a Beijing journalist and father of a 6-year-old boy who, like him, has suffered a sore throat in recent weeks, threatens to sue the municipal environmental protection agency if they don’t respond to his request for the recent data.
“This is very important for me, my son and all citizens of Beijing and China,” he says.
Yu’s quest has inspired several other Chinese to demand data from their city governments, Yu says. He is grateful to the U.S. government for its transparency, but “it should be the Chinese government that does this,” he says.
Some Beijingers, such as Wang Jinlan, say the U.S. government should mind its own business. Her daughter Du Lanxin, 8, says they filled their house with special plants last month to purify the air.
“Our home is better now, but when I go out, it’s sometimes very hard to breathe,” she says. Her mother drives her to school every day rather than breathe the smog on a bicycle or bus, but in doing so, she adds to the city’s clogged, polluted streets.
Hua Lei, vice director of the center, insists that, over the past two years, Beijing’s air quality has improved. She says the center measures small particulates in the air but does not release the data because the public “won’t understand the figures.”
Environmentalist Feng Yongfeng, founder of the environmental group Green Beagle, has been lending air-quality monitoring equipment to companies and communities since May.
“As a government, you must let the people know the worst level of air quality,” he says.
Under growing pressure, Beijing is now revising national air-quality monitoring standards and promises to require the release of data on smaller particulates — by 2016.
Environmental consultant Steven Andrews, an American based in Beijing, says the problem is that China’s “target culture” means officials, fearful for their jobs, distort pollution levels to ensure they meet government benchmarks.
Even under the new standards, “levels will still be called good in Beijing that would be in the unhealthy range in the U.S,” he says.
“The air is dangerous; it will cause cancer,” says Sam Zhang, 41, a vegetable wholesaler who signed up for the monitoring center visit. He says he trusts the U.S. Embassy figures over his own government’s data.
“Taxpayers pay the government officials’ salaries, so they should tell the truth about air quality,” he says, “but they are not elected by the people, so we have no hope they will tell the truth.”
“When will the air quality be so bad we don’t have to go to school?” he asked a city official one recent smoggy day.
“That depends on government policy,” was the cryptic reply of Li Yunting, an engineer at the Beijing Environmental Monitoring Center, which opened to public visits last month.
The doubts about official pollution data keep piling up for China’s government, as green activists, celebrity bloggers and ordinary citizens increasingly demand action and information to halt the environmental fall-out from decades of breakneck economic growth.
Burning coal is largely responsible for the oppressive smog, which the United Nations has rated the worst in the world. China has more than doubled its coal consumption in the past 10 years but has not kept pace with the clean-air technology found in the West. It also relies on cheaper forms of coal that emit more pollutants, and Beijing’s nearly 5 million cars do not generally meet the standards of the USA.
The past two months have been dire. The high incidence of heavy air pollution has sent many residents rushing to buy face masks, air purifiers and household plants believed to clean dirty air.
The haze has highlighted discrepancies between the government’s robustly sunny statistics and the far scarier numbers recorded and issued by the U.S. Embassy here. Beijing described the air pollution as “light” on December 4, a smog-filled day that forced the city airport, the world’s second busiest, to cancel hundreds of flights because of poor visibility. The embassy reading was “beyond index,” literally off the measurement charts that stop at “hazardous.”
The embassy measurements, begun in 2008 and issued hourly via Twitter, use a standard employed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to measure tiny airborne particles, such as soot from burning gas in cars, that are under 2.5 micrometers in diameter.
Experts consider these particles most damaging to human health, as they are small enough to penetrate the lungs and blood, potentially causing lung cancer and other diseases.
China publishes figures using a standard that measures coarser particular matter such as dust and keeps secret, for internal research, the measurements of smaller particles its scientists collect.
Despite the Chinese government’s blocking of Twitter, the U.S. Embassy figures are widely circulated in Beijing on Chinese websites or microblogs. In recent weeks, celebrity bloggers such as real estate mogul Pan Shiyi and children’s author Zheng Yuanjie have pressured Chinese officials to give a more accurate picture of air quality.
Yu Ping, a Beijing journalist and father of a 6-year-old boy who, like him, has suffered a sore throat in recent weeks, threatens to sue the municipal environmental protection agency if they don’t respond to his request for the recent data.
“This is very important for me, my son and all citizens of Beijing and China,” he says.
Yu’s quest has inspired several other Chinese to demand data from their city governments, Yu says. He is grateful to the U.S. government for its transparency, but “it should be the Chinese government that does this,” he says.
Some Beijingers, such as Wang Jinlan, say the U.S. government should mind its own business. Her daughter Du Lanxin, 8, says they filled their house with special plants last month to purify the air.
“Our home is better now, but when I go out, it’s sometimes very hard to breathe,” she says. Her mother drives her to school every day rather than breathe the smog on a bicycle or bus, but in doing so, she adds to the city’s clogged, polluted streets.
Hua Lei, vice director of the center, insists that, over the past two years, Beijing’s air quality has improved. She says the center measures small particulates in the air but does not release the data because the public “won’t understand the figures.”
Environmentalist Feng Yongfeng, founder of the environmental group Green Beagle, has been lending air-quality monitoring equipment to companies and communities since May.
“As a government, you must let the people know the worst level of air quality,” he says.
Under growing pressure, Beijing is now revising national air-quality monitoring standards and promises to require the release of data on smaller particulates — by 2016.
Environmental consultant Steven Andrews, an American based in Beijing, says the problem is that China’s “target culture” means officials, fearful for their jobs, distort pollution levels to ensure they meet government benchmarks.
Even under the new standards, “levels will still be called good in Beijing that would be in the unhealthy range in the U.S,” he says.
“The air is dangerous; it will cause cancer,” says Sam Zhang, 41, a vegetable wholesaler who signed up for the monitoring center visit. He says he trusts the U.S. Embassy figures over his own government’s data.
“Taxpayers pay the government officials’ salaries, so they should tell the truth about air quality,” he says, “but they are not elected by the people, so we have no hope they will tell the truth.”
2011年12月26日星期一
Some Chinese turn to U.S. Embassy for clarity in smog data
The Beijing smog often keeps Zhushen Zhenyu trapped at home, on his mother's orders, when he'd rather be playing basketball outside, but the 8-year-old still hopes for a silver lining in the clouds of pollution choking China's capital.
"When will the air quality be so bad we don't have to go to school?" he asked a city official one recent smoggy day.
"That depends on government policy," was the cryptic reply of Li Yunting, an engineer at the Beijing Environmental Monitoring Center, which opened to public visits last month.
The doubts about official pollution data keep piling up for China's government, as green activists, celebrity bloggers and ordinary citizens increasingly demand action and information to halt the environmental fall-out from decades of breakneck economic growth.
Burning coal is largely responsible for the oppressive smog, which the United Nations has rated the worst in the world. China has more than doubled its coal consumption in the past 10 years but has not kept pace with the clean-air technology found in the West. It also relies on cheaper forms of coal that emit more pollutants, and Beijing's nearly 5 million cars do not generally meet the standards of the USA.
The past two months have been dire. The high incidence of heavy air pollution has sent many residents rushing to buy face masks, air purifiers and household plants believed to clean dirty air.
The haze has highlighted discrepancies between the government's robustly sunny statistics and the far scarier numbers recorded and issued by the U.S. Embassy here. Beijing described the air pollution as "light" on December 4, a smog-filled day that forced the city airport, the world's second busiest, to cancel hundreds of flights because of poor visibility. The embassy reading was "beyond index," literally off the measurement charts that stop at "hazardous."
The embassy measurements, begun in 2008 and issued hourly via Twitter, use a standard employed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to measure tiny airborne particles, such as soot from burning gas in cars, that are under 2.5 micrometers in diameter.
Experts consider these particles most damaging to human health, as they are small enough to penetrate the lungs and blood, potentially causing lung cancer and other diseases.
China publishes figures using a standard that measures coarser particular matter such as dust and keeps secret, for internal research, the measurements of smaller particles its scientists collect.
Despite the Chinese government's blocking of Twitter, the U.S. Embassy figures are widely circulated in Beijing on Chinese websites or microblogs. In recent weeks, celebrity bloggers such as real estate mogul Pan Shiyi and children's author Zheng Yuanjie have pressured Chinese officials to give a more accurate picture of air quality.
Yu Ping, a Beijing journalist and father of a 6-year-old boy who, like him, has suffered a sore throat in recent weeks, threatens to sue the municipal environmental protection agency if they don't respond to his request for the recent data.
"This is very important for me, my son and all citizens of Beijing and China," he says.
Yu's quest has inspired several other Chinese to demand data from their city governments, Yu says. He is grateful to the U.S. government for its transparency, but "it should be the Chinese government that does this," he says.
Some Beijingers, such as Wang Jinlan, say the U.S. government should mind its own business. Her daughter Du Lanxin, 8, says they filled their house with special plants last month to purify the air.
"Our home is better now, but when I go out, it's sometimes very hard to breathe," she says. Her mother drives her to school every day rather than breathe the smog on a bicycle or bus, but in doing so, she adds to the city's clogged, polluted streets.
Hua Lei, vice director of the center, insists that, over the past two years, Beijing's air quality has improved. She says the center measures small particulates in the air but does not release the data because the public "won't understand the figures."
Environmentalist Feng Yongfeng, founder of the environmental group Green Beagle, has been lending air-quality monitoring equipment to companies and communities since May.
"As a government, you must let the people know the worst level of air quality," he says.
Under growing pressure, Beijing is now revising national air-quality monitoring standards and promises to require the release of data on smaller particulates — by 2016.
Environmental consultant Steven Andrews, an American based in Beijing, says the problem is that China's "target culture" means officials, fearful for their jobs, distort pollution levels to ensure they meet government benchmarks.
Even under the new standards, "levels will still be called good in Beijing that would be in the unhealthy range in the U.S," he says.
"The air is dangerous; it will cause cancer," says Sam Zhang, 41, a vegetable wholesaler who signed up for the monitoring center visit. He says he trusts the U.S. Embassy figures over his own government's data.
"Taxpayers pay the government officials' salaries, so they should tell the truth about air quality," he says, "but they are not elected by the people, so we have no hope they will tell the truth."
"When will the air quality be so bad we don't have to go to school?" he asked a city official one recent smoggy day.
"That depends on government policy," was the cryptic reply of Li Yunting, an engineer at the Beijing Environmental Monitoring Center, which opened to public visits last month.
The doubts about official pollution data keep piling up for China's government, as green activists, celebrity bloggers and ordinary citizens increasingly demand action and information to halt the environmental fall-out from decades of breakneck economic growth.
Burning coal is largely responsible for the oppressive smog, which the United Nations has rated the worst in the world. China has more than doubled its coal consumption in the past 10 years but has not kept pace with the clean-air technology found in the West. It also relies on cheaper forms of coal that emit more pollutants, and Beijing's nearly 5 million cars do not generally meet the standards of the USA.
The past two months have been dire. The high incidence of heavy air pollution has sent many residents rushing to buy face masks, air purifiers and household plants believed to clean dirty air.
The haze has highlighted discrepancies between the government's robustly sunny statistics and the far scarier numbers recorded and issued by the U.S. Embassy here. Beijing described the air pollution as "light" on December 4, a smog-filled day that forced the city airport, the world's second busiest, to cancel hundreds of flights because of poor visibility. The embassy reading was "beyond index," literally off the measurement charts that stop at "hazardous."
The embassy measurements, begun in 2008 and issued hourly via Twitter, use a standard employed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to measure tiny airborne particles, such as soot from burning gas in cars, that are under 2.5 micrometers in diameter.
Experts consider these particles most damaging to human health, as they are small enough to penetrate the lungs and blood, potentially causing lung cancer and other diseases.
China publishes figures using a standard that measures coarser particular matter such as dust and keeps secret, for internal research, the measurements of smaller particles its scientists collect.
Despite the Chinese government's blocking of Twitter, the U.S. Embassy figures are widely circulated in Beijing on Chinese websites or microblogs. In recent weeks, celebrity bloggers such as real estate mogul Pan Shiyi and children's author Zheng Yuanjie have pressured Chinese officials to give a more accurate picture of air quality.
Yu Ping, a Beijing journalist and father of a 6-year-old boy who, like him, has suffered a sore throat in recent weeks, threatens to sue the municipal environmental protection agency if they don't respond to his request for the recent data.
"This is very important for me, my son and all citizens of Beijing and China," he says.
Yu's quest has inspired several other Chinese to demand data from their city governments, Yu says. He is grateful to the U.S. government for its transparency, but "it should be the Chinese government that does this," he says.
Some Beijingers, such as Wang Jinlan, say the U.S. government should mind its own business. Her daughter Du Lanxin, 8, says they filled their house with special plants last month to purify the air.
"Our home is better now, but when I go out, it's sometimes very hard to breathe," she says. Her mother drives her to school every day rather than breathe the smog on a bicycle or bus, but in doing so, she adds to the city's clogged, polluted streets.
Hua Lei, vice director of the center, insists that, over the past two years, Beijing's air quality has improved. She says the center measures small particulates in the air but does not release the data because the public "won't understand the figures."
Environmentalist Feng Yongfeng, founder of the environmental group Green Beagle, has been lending air-quality monitoring equipment to companies and communities since May.
"As a government, you must let the people know the worst level of air quality," he says.
Under growing pressure, Beijing is now revising national air-quality monitoring standards and promises to require the release of data on smaller particulates — by 2016.
Environmental consultant Steven Andrews, an American based in Beijing, says the problem is that China's "target culture" means officials, fearful for their jobs, distort pollution levels to ensure they meet government benchmarks.
Even under the new standards, "levels will still be called good in Beijing that would be in the unhealthy range in the U.S," he says.
"The air is dangerous; it will cause cancer," says Sam Zhang, 41, a vegetable wholesaler who signed up for the monitoring center visit. He says he trusts the U.S. Embassy figures over his own government's data.
"Taxpayers pay the government officials' salaries, so they should tell the truth about air quality," he says, "but they are not elected by the people, so we have no hope they will tell the truth."
2011年12月25日星期日
LG launches ‘green contest’ on Facebook
LG Electronics has launched a ‘green contest’, which invites entries from LG customers to share their experiences on the official fan page on Facebook
Applicable to all existing customers of LG’s Steam and Green Health technology based washing machines and dishwashers, the contest makes them eligible to win gifts ranging from refrigerators, air purifiers and solar DOM’s, among others.
“In 2011, the core focus for LG has been health and green products. The LG Steam Technology based washing machine and dishwashers have been successful products delivering on their commitment of quality and keeping up the promise of healthy living,” said H S Paik, president, LG Gulf.
“With this competition, we would like to engage with our audience and get them more involved in sharing and learning about ‘healthy technology’ from LG.”
Taking a proactive approach to environmental and health issues, LG launched its Green Health Plus campaign in 2011.
A step up from its Healthy Living campaign of 2010, Green Health Plus campaign that will show how LG is making homes more eco-friendly through energy-efficient and health-conscious home appliances.
Applicable to all existing customers of LG’s Steam and Green Health technology based washing machines and dishwashers, the contest makes them eligible to win gifts ranging from refrigerators, air purifiers and solar DOM’s, among others.
“In 2011, the core focus for LG has been health and green products. The LG Steam Technology based washing machine and dishwashers have been successful products delivering on their commitment of quality and keeping up the promise of healthy living,” said H S Paik, president, LG Gulf.
“With this competition, we would like to engage with our audience and get them more involved in sharing and learning about ‘healthy technology’ from LG.”
Taking a proactive approach to environmental and health issues, LG launched its Green Health Plus campaign in 2011.
A step up from its Healthy Living campaign of 2010, Green Health Plus campaign that will show how LG is making homes more eco-friendly through energy-efficient and health-conscious home appliances.
2011年12月22日星期四
Panasonic launches new eco-friendly appliances
Panasonic announced the launch of new additions to its washing machine and air purifier ranges, highlighted by eco-friendly features.
The consumer electronics giant’s new EcoNavi-powered washing machines use 90 per cent less water and promises to produce better results, ensuring optimum water and energy consumption by detecting waste. It also uses 40 per cent less power.
Unveiled were the NA-148VB3 and NA-127VB3 for the B series, and the 140VG3 and 148VG3 for the G series. The latter line comes with a 3D sensor, Perfect Sense, HydroActive+ and Invertor motor that work together to provide the best possible cleaning and resource savings.
The machines also feature a new intuitive LCD screen that allows the user to monitor the activities of the device.
“Panasonic products are designed to enhance the daily lifestyle of our customers and this is particularly true for our washing machines. Incorporated in these machines are advanced features, innovative design and an eco-conscious philosophy that will fit smartly into home and a busy lifestyle,” said Shoaib Tareen, deputy general manager of home appliances at Panasonic Marketing Middle East’s consumer electronics department.
Also launched were the new range of humidifier air purifiers, the F-VXF70M and F-VXF35M, both of which are equipped with nanoeTM, and OH radical wrapped by water molecules that penetrates and deodorises fabrics, as well as hydrating skin.
“Now, with the new range of air purifiers, nanoeTM OH radicals can activate better since moisture in the air can be set by these machines in a comfortable and conducive manner, thanks to the humidifier function,” said Motoharu Sugaya, Panasonic Marketing Middle East product manager.
The air purifiers are energy efficient, which can reduce 40 per cent of the normal energy consumption through Panasonic’s EcoNavi function.
The consumer electronics giant’s new EcoNavi-powered washing machines use 90 per cent less water and promises to produce better results, ensuring optimum water and energy consumption by detecting waste. It also uses 40 per cent less power.
Unveiled were the NA-148VB3 and NA-127VB3 for the B series, and the 140VG3 and 148VG3 for the G series. The latter line comes with a 3D sensor, Perfect Sense, HydroActive+ and Invertor motor that work together to provide the best possible cleaning and resource savings.
The machines also feature a new intuitive LCD screen that allows the user to monitor the activities of the device.
“Panasonic products are designed to enhance the daily lifestyle of our customers and this is particularly true for our washing machines. Incorporated in these machines are advanced features, innovative design and an eco-conscious philosophy that will fit smartly into home and a busy lifestyle,” said Shoaib Tareen, deputy general manager of home appliances at Panasonic Marketing Middle East’s consumer electronics department.
Also launched were the new range of humidifier air purifiers, the F-VXF70M and F-VXF35M, both of which are equipped with nanoeTM, and OH radical wrapped by water molecules that penetrates and deodorises fabrics, as well as hydrating skin.
“Now, with the new range of air purifiers, nanoeTM OH radicals can activate better since moisture in the air can be set by these machines in a comfortable and conducive manner, thanks to the humidifier function,” said Motoharu Sugaya, Panasonic Marketing Middle East product manager.
The air purifiers are energy efficient, which can reduce 40 per cent of the normal energy consumption through Panasonic’s EcoNavi function.
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