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Smog to shroud China during weekend
February 22, 2014, 5:01 am

College students wearing masks pose with a plastic bag during a performance art to raise awareness of air pollution on December 5, 2013 in Xi an, China [Getty Images]

College students wearing masks pose with a plastic bag during a performance art to raise awareness of air pollution on December 5, 2013 in Xi an, China [Getty Images]

Smog will continue to blanket China’s north and central regions on Saturday as China’ weather body issued a yellow alert for air pollution.

Beijing, Tianjin and parts of Hebei, Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces expect heavy air pollution from Saturday morning to Sunday morning, according to the National Meteorological Center (NMC) forecast.

China’s capital city of Beijing is already under an orange alert, the second highest possible warning with schools being asked to suspend classes and industrial plants advised to shut down or cut 30 per cent of emissions.

These provinces have been hit with heavy smog since Thursday. On Friday, PM 2.5 readings in these regions kept rising and exceeded 200 micrograms per cubic meter, far above the 25 micrograms level considered safe by the World Health Organization.

The NMC on Thursday forecast the smog would last for a week as no cold front is in sight to help disperse it.

Source: Agencies