Beijing is China’s second largest city in population, home to 21 million residents and located in China’s northeast. This capital city is a hub of culture, politics, education, and science for Asia and the world. Beijing is one of the oldest cities in the world, and today relies on its large business and technology sector to bolster its large GDP. Like other large Chinese cities, along with urbanization has come a dramatic increase in smog, and overall pollution.
This article discusses these more specific aspects of pollution in Beijing:
Air Pollution in Beijing
Beijing has been known to have especially poor air quality, especially in the years following the turn of the 21st century. While air pollution conditions have improved since, air quality is still not up to par with health standards. IQAir’s 2020 report of cities with the dirtiest air found Beijing ranked 241 of 4,744 cities evaluated. Beijing’s average fine particulate matter concentration in 2020 was 37.5 ug/m3, over 7 times the standard of 5 μg/m3 set by the World Health Organization.
Beijing’s notorious smog is caused by a huge economic boom in China which led to an increase in:
- Vehicle emissions
- Industrial emissions
- Use of coal-burning to heat buildings
Beijing’s emissions in combination with its unique topography create the perfect recipe for smoggy conditions and unhealthy air quality. Beijing is surrounded by mountains, and emissions from industrialized southern regions are carried up by winds and become trapped in the city. China has reduced its levels of PM2.5 by 47% in the last 15 years due to a switch from coal to natural gas, and an increase in electric vehicles. However, there are still days when Beijing is covered in smog, and unhealthy air causes respiratory health issues.
Water Pollution in Beijing
Beijing’s water pollution issue may be even more pressing than its air pollution in coming years. Water pollution in Beijing is caused by:
- Industrial runoff
- Chemical waste disposal
- Garbage dumping
- Improper wastewater treatment
These practices negatively affect Beijing’s lakes and rivers, as well as the safety its drinking water.
Surface Water
Beijing is home to many small lakes and rivers. A 2017 study found that almost 40% of those lakes and rivers were so polluted that they were beyond the point of filtering to be used as a drinking source, and could not maintain any life. As Beijing industrialized, small rivers throughout the city like the Wenyu river have become sewage and chemical dumping areas for industries. Combined with China’s low standards for wastewater treatment, this has meant that the Wenyu river, and other rivers like the Yongding, contains high amounts of sewage and toxic heavy metals.
Drinking Water
Beijing’s Water Bureau president claims that all tap water is up to standards of the World Health Organization. However, most residents do not drink water from the tap and instead boil or filter the water before drinking. Beijing’s drinking water has been known to carry over 20 times the maximum safe level of Lead set by the WHO. As the city’s population continues to increase, reservoirs are being drained at faster rates and a water shortage for the city is on the horizon unless Beijing discovers new water sources, or can tackle pollution issues in its existing surface and groundwater.
Land Pollution in Beijing
Like its water, Beijing’s soil is also heavily polluted by dangerous heavy metals like lead, chromium, and arsenic due to improper disposal of industrial waste. Heavy metals in soil can make their way into the water and food supply and have detrimental health effects.
Key Takeaways
Air Pollution: Beijing often struggles with heavy smog due to industrial emissions from China’s south that are blown up into Beijing by winds and settle within the city.
Water Pollution: Most of Beijing’s surface water is polluted and residents do not drink water from the tap. Drinking water is often polluted by heavy metals from industrial activities.
Land Pollution: Heavy metals from improper industrial waste disposal heavily pollute Beijing’s soil and can have negative health effects.