http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/south/08/12/asia.haze/index.html

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/archives/2002/aug/11/081104832.html?brown+cloud


In reading the above article, it seems to me that perhaps the efforts the U.S. have made on air quality have paid off.

Yet in South Asia, they are looking at the possibility of millions of people who could potentially die from the effects of the "Asian Brown Cloud".

It makes me wonder how their air quality got so bad. And how do they regulate their air quality compared to the United States???

[This message was edited by Lighteningrodd on 08-12-02 at 10:10 PM.]

The first thing that came to my mind was the unusually high number of forest fires in the US this year, But the jet stream moves the other direction, away from asia.

Here's a map of the world jet stream.

http://squall.sfsu.edu/gif/jetstream_norhem_00.gif

Possibilities that come to mind:

Reason #1: Anybody remember the huge forest fires in Indonesia back in 1998 that sent a big black cloud out over the South China Sea?

Reason #2: China and India have a billion people each cooking several meals a day. The jet streams may be pushing the haze away, but the source isn't moving!

Reason #3: Hong Kong, Kowloon district in particular, is a very densely populated area surrounded by high hills. The air probably doesn't move very much inside where the pollution is being pumped out.

Reason #4: Ever actually been to Manila? Chanceygardner's first link takes you to a Greenpeace story, and there's another link there to a related story in the Philippines, implying success there. Guess again! The Negros province is on Luzon, same island as Manila, but toward the coast, away from the real problem! They can clean air all they want and never make a difference!

I remember asking my wife (born in Manila). I landed at Ninoy Aquino Airport, and we were walking outside. A bus went by with a choking black cloud following close behind, and I turned to her and asked, "Do you have emmissions tests for cars here?"

She laughed and said, "Oh yes, we do! But they're not enforced!" Of course, they get all the new Japanese cars with better standards, but the diesel buses and jeepneys, the worst offenders, aren't controlled at all.

Not only are more than 3/4 of the Philippines cars and trucks in the Manila area, they're all stuck in traffic! Manila Metro, including Quezon City, with close to 20,000,000 people, is so congested that a trip across town, one way, can take up to 2 hours! (Been there, done that!) The EDSA, a freeway circling the city, is bumper to bumper much of the day, and the average speed is usually between 5-20 mph, the only exception being Monday morning between 2 and 5 am!