![]() ![]() ![]() Eyder Peralta, NPR Mexico City correspondent JohannesburgĪfrica is well known for its stunning sunsets and wide open skies – Paul Simon even sung about them in his song "Under African Skies." We have only a handful of environmental contingencies a year. Mexicans used to joke the air was so bad, so often, that birds would die mid-flight. In the 1990s, measures like these were put in place every month. If it gets bad enough, government offices shut down.Īll of this has made a difference. It often means residents can't drive to work or school, for example, so they have to walk, bike or take public transportation. If the air quality doesn't improve, the countermeasures get tougher. They order factories to reduce their output, food vendors are prohibited from using charcoal and road work stops. And as soon as the air quality gets bad - either too high a concentration of ozone or particulate matter - the government orders even newer, more efficient cars off the streets. Less efficient cars are allowed limited time on the road. So, how did it get better?Įssentially, the government got tough on pollution with a complex system of countermeasures. But in the 1990s and early 2000s, air quality would routinely hit the 200s. And you feel it - your eyes get watery, your throat scratchy and the sky looks hazy. The air quality here is still bad - on Thursday, the AQI reached 123, which is unhealthy for people with respiratory problems. The sun rises over Mexico City on a smoggy morning, May 18. People were less aware than they are now of the difference between weather and pollution, fog and smog. To me, it was simply the cost of covering - and living - an epic story. The air had an acrid, sulfurous smell, and soot was everywhere. In most of my years there, the pollution was terrible, especially in winter, although we didn't have ways to measure it. I first visited Beijing in 1982, and lived there much of the time between 19. NPR correspondents Anthony Kuhn and Eyder Peralta and freelance reporters Shalu Yadav and Kate Bartlett share what it's like in Beijing, Seoul, New Delhi, Mexico City and Johannesburg. In some cases, those levels have improved over time. This week, Canada and parts of the United States have confronted unprecedented declines in air quality due to smoke from Canadian wildfires, but people elsewhere in the world have long had to adjust and adapt to living with hazardous pollution levels. A general view showing buildings shrouded by polluted air in Seoul on April 12, 2023. ![]()
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