Sounding the Siren.docVIP

Sounding the Siren 　　“Since November， for nearly two months this winter， weve had to keep the lights on at home even in the daytime because of the frequent gloomy days caused by heavy smog，” 60-year-old Beijinger Yan Li told NewsChina in late December. The blanket of pollution that smothered the capital in late 2015 confined Yan and her two-year-old grandson to their home for much of the season. 　　In December， for the first time， Beijing issued “red alerts” for pollution， the highestlevel alert in a four-tier warning system. There were two： the first spanned from December 8-12， and the second from December 19-22. The city’s concentrations of PM2.5?C those fine particles less than 2.5 microm- eters （0.0025mm） in diameter that can penetrate deep into the lungs ?C rocketed above international standards. Concentrations of PM2.5 greater than 250.5 micrograms per cubic meter are considered “hazardous” by the US Environmental Protection Agency， which sets the highest acceptable average concentration over a 24-hour period at 35. The World Health Organizations （WHO） standard of 25 micrograms is even more strict. At its worst in late 2015， Beijings concentrations exceeded 500 micrograms per cubic meter in most parts of the city and its surrounding regions， 20 times the WHOs highest acceptable amount. 　　The red alerts triggered a series of actions across the capital. Schools closed down， vehi- cles were pulled off the roads， and construction projects and factory production slowed under temporary limitations. The two alerts were perceived by the general public as a sign of the government’s willingness to take real action to curb pollution in response to increasing discontent from the people regarding the country’s environmental problems. 　　 Action and Inaction 　　According to definitions from the China Meteorological Administration， there was an annual average of five “smoggy days” during the 1960s， while that number climbed to 26 in 2013. Visibility also dropped from an ave