Beijing hit by thick smog as it struggles to improve air quality for ‘green’ Winter Olympics

Ahead of the Beijing Winter Olympics, the Chinese capital has been enveloped in thick smog. Concentrations of the hazardous airborne particle PM2.5 were measured at 205 micrograms per cubic metre on January 24. This exceeds the recommended levels of no more than 5 by the World Health Organization. But Beijing and its neighbouring province of Hebei will shut down companies and stop traffic during the Winter Olympics to clean up the air. The Games start on February 4, 2022, and will be followed in March by the Winter Paralympics. The Chinese government has promised every aspect of the Olympics will be green and that the Games will be carbon-neutral.