Posted by
Ed
12 yrs ago
Hong Kong's air pollution is almost three times higher than those in Sydney, New York and London. For God's sake, it is three times higher, not three percent or 30 percent! I have suffered from having an allergy which is linked to bad air. My doctor gives me nasal sprays to stop my running nose but he warns me that the medicine is composed of steroids…
Read More http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/hkedition/2012-11/23/content_15952253.htm
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vak
12 yrs ago
But you CHOOSE to live in Midlevels
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Ed
12 yrs ago
I spoke with Dr Anthony Hedley http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rNX2-eAZwk at a pollution conference sponsored by AsiaXPAT some years ago... and asked him specifically - is there anywhere in HK that one can live that is relatively safe in terms of air pollution...
His response - no matter where you live in HK the pollution levels are dangerous.
I have the same issues with pollution-induced allergies as the author above... the only way I can avoid the symptoms is to run air purifiers in my office and home...
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We all have a choice with air pollution - leave the country.. but most people chose to stay.. deciding that the $$ is more important..
'd even say air pollution here is more than 3 times worse than SYD - when I took off from SYD airport a few days ago, it was a little overcast (rainy) and we could see the ocean and ground right until we hit the clouds and levelled off for cruising.. arriving into HK,.. we couldn't see HK until during descent when the plane broke through the pollution cloud.. and even then, most of the buildings and airport was covered in haze..
We decided for exactly this reason to leave HK.. have resigned my job and in the process of moving back to Aus..
I
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Indeed ironic that HK life expectancy is higher than Australia.Or the US.
Does not make sense but if you are ok with longer life with respiratory problems, then HK it is!
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Gucci
12 yrs ago
"Indeed ironic that HK life expectancy is higher than Australia.Or the US.
Does not make sense ..."
I'm guessing that the pollution problem escalated quite recently while life expectancy figures need to be compared to at least a generation ago? So we'll have to stay alive at least a decade or so more to quantify the true cost of HK's current pollution problem :P
Here's a pic that epitomises the state of HK in more ways than one:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25708368@N07/8181514216/
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If you don't like HK, then leave. There are many places around the world that are probably better in some ways. However in terms of economic pace, transportation and area where business is safe and return on investment (given you work hard and not always complain) then HK is a GREAT place. You'll probably go to another place with fresh air, but then you won't have the other perks. I live in HK for over 15 years, and live in Kowloon or NT / Sai Kung. I'm not an expat and do not need to reside in Mid Levels. Yes pollution exist but then go find a tree in the middle of the forest, dump your fuel powered car and all the nice house appliances that you have together with all the convenient and expensive clothes you wear (which are made in china and as long as it does not bring fumes to HK, you're probably ok with that) and then you might be ok. Although you might find something else to complain about.
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Its a trade-off. It always is no matter where you live. There are no perfect places.
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Ed
12 yrs ago
Hong Kong's Hazy Outlook
Last month marked Hong Kong's worst October for roadside pollution—air quality measured at street level—since the Environmental Protection Department began keeping the data in 1998.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324469304578140652103306788.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
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Ok freewhizz, what about those of us who've settled here for good cos it's now home? Why should we just put up & shut up?
Breathing clean air SHOULD be a basic human right along with all those other civil liberties that are normally spoken about.
I can't pursue my chosen career anywhere else in this world. My wife is local. My kids are local Eurasians. I ain't gonna move and I ain't gonna shut up. I expect, nay I demand that, this bloody government pulls its finger out and does something about the air we breathe after years of inaction by Uncle Tung and the arrogant midget. And I'm hopeful that with the new bloke we will see improvements provided that enough public support for change counterbalances the big business self-interests.
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crxuk
12 yrs ago
Humans are not only ungrateful but they are selfish as well
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Ed
12 yrs ago
Re: HK longevity... the people who are living well past 80 were not breathing smog for the majority of their lives... the brutal smog issue is a relatively recent phenomenon...
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selda
12 yrs ago
it's too easy to suggest that if we don't like the air quality in HK, we should pack our bags and leave. Many of us cannot do that due to many reasons that may or may not be related to career prospects and salary. The argument "shut up or leave' is fallacious because it pits expats against locals, as if we were not breathing the same toxic air. Certainly breathing clean air should be a basic human right, regardless of where you were born.
My health has been seriously affected by high pollution levels. I have developed chronic bronchitis, i catch 3-4 colds every winter, i have eczema on and off (off when i am in Europe for over 2 weeks!) and often feel exhausted, despite sleeping enough.
I have been in HK for 17 years, what should i do? Leave my partner, all my friends, a job that i like and relocate to Europe??? I left my home country 25 years ago!
No, i am staying and fighting for a cleaner and healthier environment for everybody.
In order to heal myself i am spending more and more time out of HK. I am still trying to work out a way of spending at least 6 months a year out of HK, but i am not leaving for good.
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HKLEV
12 yrs ago
I have the opposite. I had asthma and eczema and regularly caught colds when I lived in Europe. Since I have been in HK they have cleared up completely. But both flare up again when I return to Europe. I hardly catch colds, except after longhaul flights. I would credit the lack of pollen, relatively warm climate and high humidity in HK...
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AYip
12 yrs ago
@ HKLEV - I thought i was the only one who thought this, but i have exactly the same experience.
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crxuk
12 yrs ago
I like doing research and I found the following information
Life expectancy
Hong Kong Male: 81.85 years
Hong Kong Female: 84.41 years
EU Male: 78.2 years
EU Female: 82.3 years
US Male: 75.65 years
US Female: 80.69 years
If it was about fresh air i am sure this would have been different.
Sorry if I have been rude.
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Ed
12 yrs ago
Hong Kong's Scary Air (Photos)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204349404578102230119750410.html?mod=WSJAsia_hpp_LEFTTopStories#slide/1
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Three things are certain in Hong Kong, you are never going to own a sugar farm on Nathan Road, or have true democracy with free elections to vote in the next CEO, nor pollution free, clean air.
I think dgjohn deserves credit for his pragmatic approach, and for placing the personal well being of himself and his family in front of greed. His realisation that the air quality problem is here for the long term, and that there's no point in bitching about it, should tell you all something.
Be reminded, the bulk of the pollution does not originate in Hong Kong, it is yet another unwanted migrant from China and it's not possible for Hong Kong to do a damn thing about it. Anyone who has visited China extensively in the past 20 years will certainly be aware that the majority of the country is an environmental disaster zone, with heavily polluted air, sewage and chemical contamination in the waterways and contaminated toxic farmland, are the price of development and the desire to be an economic superpower.
This is also not a scenario that is going to end soon, the country is still in the middle of it's "industrial revolution", renewable and clean energy is too costly and inefficient, to drive the machine and also allow it to sustain its growth targets. It will certainly ignore the demands and foot stamping of a handful of bourgeois expats, trying to make a fast buck down in the ex colony.
The more you bitch about it, the more opportunity you give the puppet government to raise fuel and vehicle taxes to discourage the use of private transport and to increase taxes on airlines, in an apparent effort to provide "clean" air.
It is a tough choice, but it is your freedom of choice as well, one freedom you do have here, we all know where the door is. Without getting too nostalgic about friends and family (remember absence does apparently make the heart grow fonder), you may as well exercise that choice, unless greed outweighs your desire for personal well being, you may as well start to pack now.
I hear that Greenland or the Falklands both have pretty good air quality.
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selda
12 yrs ago
crxuk,
life expectancy is influenced by many factors and shouldn't be confused with life span.
Hong Kong has a high life expectancy now because of its good and free public health system (people are not dying of epidemic diseases, infant mortality is extremely low, women don't die giving birth, etc).
You can compare this high life expectancy with the US', but don't forget that poor people there have no access to the same standards of medical care as they do here.
Instead of comparing the two populations (oranges and apples!) , you'd better compare the life expectancy of Asian Americans to that of HKers and you will see that it's much higher, 87 years. Asian Americans tend to smoke and drink less, exercise more, eat better and be wealthier than the general population of the US.
More importantly when you look at HK, most of those who are still enjoying a long life in HK actually were born and grew up in China, mostly in rural areas, migrated to HK and endured these high pollution levels only for a decade. I came here in the 90' and the air quality was much better than now.
Most of these elderly people had a fairly active lifestyle in their youth (many still do!) and unlike their counterparts in the UK, didn't drink much, didn't eat junk food, relied more on traditional medicine, were not driving to work and sitting indoors all day.
I am pretty sure that life expectancy will soon start to decrease in HK. Younger people here don't exercise much, eat junk food, drink more alcohol, are prescribed a lot of drugs, spend most of their time indoors, and have been breathing this filthy air.
Just look at how many kids in HK are unfit and can't run for more than 5 minutes (talk to any PE teacher) suffer from respiratory diseases, allergies, etc.
Also i suggest you check HK cancer rates, which have been steadily climbing.
Lung cancer is the most prevalent cancer recorded in HK, and the incidence of this cancer in 2010 was 63.8 per 100,000 people. In the UK in 2009 the incidence was 47.9 per 100.000. How do you explain that?
Life expectancy doesn't say much about the general health of the population and their life span. It just tells you that if you have 100 people half of which die before they turn 5 due to poor sanitation, lack of medical care, accidents, AIDS (as in some African countries) life expectancy will be very low even if those who survive reach 100.
On the other hand if most people reach maturity (as they do in HK) the general life expectancy shoots up, even if only a handful live to 80, take 10 pills a day, and are in and out of hospitals.
Beware of statistics, especially if you are the one who ends up with no chicken while your neighbor eat three. That chicken and a half per person referred to by statistics is not in your stomach :-)
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crxuk
12 yrs ago
Selda,
I just did a quick search and that is what came up. I did not go in-depth like you did. I appreciate you educating me.
What shall be done about it, what can be done about it, can it be done?
Pollution is a big issue but people are selfish, why should they bother if someone else is dying/suffering.
I think petrol price should go double. Promote Hybrid cars. Go more tougher on emission.
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hi folks
many things discussed about health and air quality. i was in October 2012 at a presentation of Dr. Sandor (nobel prize laureate) with an opening remark by Mr David Eldon. here you find the opening remark of Mr Eldon http://www.civic-exchange.org/wp/121009richardsandor/ , in very clear words to address the past and current situation in Hong Kong.
I myself are in a situation where i look for investors / licencees for a new "Integrated Diesel particulate filters and catalyst" all over the world. I see that the whole industry goes one route and i differentiate by another route which i proved in 6 years field-testing as workable with superior results, to name some: NOx/NO2 close zero %, PN2.5, lower costs for maintenance/hardware/operation, simplicity, stability of operation, and already working with better than Euro6 results since 2008.
I find myself in a similar situation as i was in 2008 when i invented something different for dental technicians which is nowadays standard process in the field.
Anybody who committed to help or wanna discuss, please contact me.
Frank
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there is very little we can do here to stop the air polution in HK getting worse.
plant more trees... turn off you idling engines... even we can change our cars to electric will help a little.
but if you haden't noticed... air moves.
You have to spend a little time over the border to understand where it orginates from.
and the popution control over the border is a joke!
little ol HK has no control over its big industral brother.
so sadly it is more of a case of... suck it up... or leave.... than lets all hold hands and fix the problem.
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Ed
12 yrs ago
Hong Kong chokes on own success
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoljHRWg3pQ
Asia air pollution deaths to rise: environment group
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/324782/asia-air-pollution-deaths-to-rise-environment-group
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interesting debate...however.
"wherever you go there you are"
lee du ploy
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ewc21
12 yrs ago
I am not sure if we can easily link life expectancy with pollution levels. It's ironic that HK has one of the highest life spans worldwide, but could it be that food, lifestyle and other factors (besides pollution levels) is better in HK than elsewhere?
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all non-smokers don’t like it.
but do realize the second hand smoke debarkle was a great con?
No one has ever proven that second hand smoke kills 1000's of people every year.
2 documents were created that facts were taken out of context and twisted.
soon more was created based on this untrue facts… and soon you have figures like 600,000 people die every year from second hand smoke” which is just plain BS!
then it was a just of matter of geting all the non-smokers to beleive it and happily jump on borad... soon this soon turned into a us verus them... and smoke free laws were soon changed.
"The studies showed that for any given nonsmoker, the lifetime risk of getting lung cancer remains small: 4 to 5 in 1000 ordinarily, and 6 to 7 in 1000 if he or she has been living with a smoking spouse."
That's 100% exposure indoors over a lifetime.
BMJ did the longest most in depth study and concluded:
"Conclusions The results do not support a causal relation between environmental tobacco smoke and tobacco related mortality, although they do not rule out a small effect. The association between exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and coronary heart disease and lung cancer may be considerably weaker than generally believed."
The smoke campaigns also like to bring up the idea that it's for the safety of the workers, This shows waitresses in smoke filled bars are exposed to only a 5th of what the EPA considers hazardous:
hey i'm a non-smoker and hate the smell too.
but understand the turth... and how the wool is so easily pulled over ones eyes... And know its not going to kill me.
feel free to polilty ask for them to put it out.
just don't use the the second hand smoke kills BS.
;)
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