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Pollution kills 1.6 million in China every year

03:43 PM | 14 Aug, 2015
Pollution kills 1.6 million in China every year
ISLAMABAD (Online) - Outdoor air pollution contributes to the deaths of an estimated 1.6 million people in China every year, or about 4,400 people a day, according to a newly released scientific paper.

The paper maps the geographic sources of China’s toxic air and concludes that much of the smog that routinely shrouds Beijing comes from emissions in a distant industrial zone, a finding that may complicate the government’s efforts to clean up the capital city’s air in time for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

The authors are members of Berkeley Earth, a research organisation based in Berkeley, California, that uses statistical techniques to analyse environmental issues. The paper has been accepted for publication in the peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS One, according to the organisation.

According to the data presented in the paper, about three-eighths of the Chinese population breathe air that would be rated “unhealthy” by United States standards. The most dangerous of the pollutants studied were fine airborne particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter, which can find their way deep into human lungs, be absorbed into the bloodstream and cause a host of health problems, including asthma, strokes, lung cancer and heart attacks, said a foreign TV Channel.

(FILES) - This photo taken on July 18, 2006 shows cyclists passing through thick pollution from a factory in Yutian, 100km east of Beijing in China's northwest Hebei province. Surging levels of carbon dioxide sent greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to a new record in 2013, while oceans, which absorb the emissions, have become more acidic than ever, the UN said on September 9, 2014. AFP PHOTO / PETER PARKS

The organisation is well known for a study that reviewed the concerns of people who reject established climate science and found that the rise in global average temperatures has been caused “almost entirely” by human activity.

The researchers used similar statistical methods to assess Chinese air pollution. They analyzed four months’ worth of hourly readings taken at 1,500 ground stations in mainland China, Taiwan and other places in the region, including South Korea.

The group said it was publishing the raw data so other researchers could use it to perform their own studies.

Berkeley Earth’s analysis is consistent with earlier indications that China has not been able to successfully tackle its air pollution problems.

Greenpeace East Asia found in April that, of 360 cities in China, more than 90 percent failed to meet national air quality standards in the first three months of 2015.

The Berkeley Earth paper’s findings present data saying that air pollution contributes to 17 percent of all deaths in the nation each year. The group says its mortality estimates are based on a World Health Organization framework for projecting death rates from five diseases known to be associated with exposure to various levels of fine-particulate pollution. The authors calculate that the annual toll is 95 percent likely to fall between 700,000 and 2.2 million deaths, and their estimate of 1.6 million a year is the midpoint of that range.

A woman carries her baby at La Ensenada, southern Chile, on April 26, 2015. A sleeping giant for more than 50 years, Calbuco sprang to life in spectacular bursts of ash and lava Wednesday and Thursday, forcing 6,500 people living nearby to evacuate and blanketed southern Chile in suffocating volcanic debris. AFP PHOTO/VLADIMIR RODAS (Photo credit should read VLADIMIR RODAS/AFP/Getty Images)

The Chinese government is sensitive about public data showing that air pollution is killing its citizens, or even allusions to such a conclusion. Though the authorities have gradually permitted greater public access to air quality readings, censors routinely purge Chinese websites and social media channels of information that the ruling Communist Party worries might provoke popular unrest. In March, after a lengthy documentary video about the health effects of air pollution circulated widely online, the party’s central propaganda department ordered Chinese websites to delete it.

Much of China’s air pollution comes from the large-scale burning of coal. Using pollution measurements and wind patterns, the researchers concluded that much of the smog afflicting Beijing came not from sources in the city, but rather from coal-burning factories 200 miles southwest in Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province and a major industrial hub.

Promises to clean up Beijing’s air were a centerpiece of the nation’s bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics. The mayor of Beijing, Wang Anshun, championed restrictions on vehicles in the city, and state news media outlets lauded projects to replace coal-fired heating systems in urban areas with systems that use natural gas and generate far less particulate pollution.

“We will improve the air quality not only for the Games, but also for the demand of our people,” said Shen Xue, an Olympic gold medalist and ambassador for the 2022 bid, according to a report last month by Xinhua, the state news agency.

The Berkeley Earth paper showed, however, that to clear the skies over Beijing, mitigation measures will be needed across a broad stretch of the country southwest of the capital, affecting tens of millions of people. “It’s not enough to clean up the city,” said Elizabeth Muller, executive director of the organisation.

“You’re going to also have to clean up the entire industrial region 200 miles away.”

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Pakistani rupee remains stable against US Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal and Dirham; Check forex rates

Pakistani rupee remained stable against the US dollar, and other currencies in the open market on Friday.

Dollar Rate in Pakistan Today

On Friday, the US dollar remained stable and was being quoted at 283.2 for buying and 286.15 for selling.

Euro comes down to 308 for buying and 311 for selling. British Pound rate dropped to 358.5 for buying, and 362 for selling.

UAE Dirham AED witnessed slight drop and new rate stands at 77.4 whereas the Saudi Riyal remained stable at 76.

Today's currency exchange rates in Pakistan - 8 December 2023

Source: Forex Association of Pakistan. (last update 09:00 AM)

Currency Symbol Buying Selling
US Dollar ‎USD 283.2 286.15
Euro EUR 308 311
UK Pound Sterling GBP 358.5 362
U.A.E Dirham AED 77.4 78.1
Saudi Riyal SAR 76 76.8
Australian Dollar AUD 187.2 189
Bahrain Dinar BHD 757.23 765.23
Canadian Dollar CAD 209 211
China Yuan CNY 39.89 40.29
Danish Krone DKK 41.19 41.59
Hong Kong Dollar HKD 36.41 36.71
Indian Rupee INR 3.42 3.53
Japanese Yen JPY 1.39 1.45
Kuwaiti Dinar KWD 921.71 930.71
Malaysian Ringgit MYR 61.02 61.62
New Zealand Dollar NZD 174.54 176.54
Norwegians Krone NOK 26.05 26.35
Omani Riyal OMR 739.62 747.62
Qatari Riyal ‎QAR 78.22 78.92
Singapore Dollar SGD 211 213
Swedish Korona SEK 27.12 27.42
Swiss Franc CHF 324.94 327.44
Thai Bhat THB 8.06 8.21

Gold prices in Pakistan increase; Check out latest rates here

Gold price in Pakistan increased as the yellow metal witnessed an upward trend in the international market.

Gold Rates in Pakistan Today - 8 December 2023

On Friday, the price of a single tola of 24-karat gold stands at Rs217,400 and 10 grams of 24k gold costs Rs186,390.

Single tola of 22 Karat Gold costs Rs199,282, 21 karat rate for per tola is Rs190,225 and 18k gold rate is Rs163,050 each tola.

In the global market, gold prices hover at around $2026, gaining $8.30 on Friday.

Today Gold Rate in Pakistan

Today Gold Price in Pakistan (8 December 2023)

City Gold Silver
Lahore PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Karachi PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Islamabad PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Peshawar PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Quetta PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Sialkot PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Attock PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Gujranwala PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Jehlum PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Multan PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Bahawalpur PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Gujrat PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Nawabshah PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Chakwal PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Hyderabad PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Nowshehra PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Sargodha PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Faisalabad PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583
Mirpur PKR 217,400 PKR 2,583

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