命运共同体：国际臭氧层保护日——守护蓝天 | World Ozone Day: Battle for Blue Sky

编者按：9月16日是国际臭氧层保护日。本期“命运共同体”系列聚焦北京的蓝天保卫战。

Editor's note: September 16 is the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer. In this episode of "Come Together" series, CGTN looks at how the Chinese capital city of Beijing is moving forward to be pulled out from the list of the world's top 200 most-polluted cities through years of efforts.

每一天，邹毅都会拿出手机，将镜头对准北京电视台拍照。从2013年1月27日开始，他坚持以照片的形式记录北京的空气质量并发布在自己的社交账号上。截至8月15日，他已经坚持了2391天。

Every day, Zou Yi takes a picture of Beijing TV Station, a landmark building located in the city center. He has been keeping a record of Beijing's air quality and sharing his photos on social media accounts since January 27, 2013. He has posted 2,391 photos, as of August 15, 2019.

“这不仅仅是照片。它是一部北京空气质量的档案。看它就能看2013年到今天（的北京空气质量），” 北京一目了然公众环境保护研究中心创始人邹毅说。

"They are not merely pictures. They are archives of Beijing's air quality. They show how the air quality has changed since 2013," Zou Yi, Founder of BeijingAirNow, told CGTN.

自2013年1月27日起，邹毅每天都会用手机拍摄北京电视台大楼外观。

Zou Yi takes a picture of Beijing TV Station every day since January 27, 2013 to record Beijing's air quality. /CGTN Photo

2013年年初，京津冀及周边地区一个月内连续五次遭遇空气重度污染。邹毅生活的北京笼罩在一片雾霾之中。

At the beginning of 2013, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region and its surrounding areas recorded severe air pollution five times in just a month. The Chinese capital where Zou lives was shrouded in heavy smog.

“那个时候（舆论）妖魔化这个雾霾，说是‘毒都’、‘雾都’……各种不好的词都可能会用上，”谈及拍摄初衷，邹毅如是说。“那个时候没有（对雾霾有）很好的解释，所以我做这个事情——把它拍下来，用客观用事实去说。”

"People were demonizing the smog at that time. They called Beijing a 'smoggy' and 'toxic' city. Unfortunately, there wasn't any reliable explanation to the cause of smog. So, that's why I started taking pictures, allowing pictures to 'tell' the truth," Zou recalled.

邹毅展示《一目了然》卷轴

The photo collection titled "Leaping to the Eye" displayed by Zou Yi at his home. / CGTN Photo

在邹毅的家里，他向记者展示了一幅长约10米的卷轴，共有2164张照片，记录着北京近五年来每天的空气质量情况。邹毅给这组照片命名为《一目了然》。

The 10-meter-long reel that Zou displayed at his home consisted of 2,164 photos. In his eyes, it was the best demonstration of Beijing's air quality in the past five years. This is why he named his collection "Leaping to the Eye."

“一张图片可以胜过千言万语。这些照片告诉了我们大气污染的原因，也告诉了我们在大气污染防治中的努力。”邹毅说。

"A picture is better than a thousand words. This collection tells us the reasons behind air pollution and the efforts we've made to cope with it," Zou said.

Efforts paid off

通过图像识别技术，邹毅和他的团队根据这些照片获得了北京地区的PM2.5浓度数据。数据显示，从2013年到2018年，北京地区的PM2.5浓度降幅超过了30%。这与北京市生态环境局公布的数据高度吻合。

By using image recognition technology, Zou and his team extracted PM 2.5 concentration data from the pictures. The data showed that from 2013 to 2018, the concentration of PM 2.5 in Beijing dropped significantly by over 30 percent. It was consistent with the data released by the Beijing Municipal Ecological Environment Bureau.

“（北京）经济还在中高速（增）长，气候的条件在几十年的周期里缓慢地变得不利，所以这两个情况下得到这个成绩是不容易的。” 清华大学环境学院教授贺克斌说。

"This is pretty remarkable since Beijing maintained a medium-to-high speed economic growth during this period. The climate conditions have become unfavorable in decades," noted He Kebin, professor with the Department of Air Pollution Control at Tsinghua University.

“由于工业化带动城市化，城市化带动机动化。这三个‘化’的演变过程就形成了我们现在说的大气复合污染。复合污染里面，目前最突出的一个是PM2.5，第二个就是臭氧。北京2015年以来基本上稳住了臭氧，这也非常不容易，”贺克斌说。

"Industrialization leads to urbanization, which itself brings about motorization. This process creates what we called 'combined air pollution.' The leading source of combined air pollution is PM 2.5 followed by ozone. Since 2015, Beijing has largely contained the amount of ozone, and this is not an easy task," He continued.

过去二十年中，为改善空气质量，北京市逐渐建立起一套完善的空气质量管理体系，形成高密度的监测网络。同时，加强与周边地区协同治理，确立了京津冀及周边地区2+26个大气污染传输通道城市。此外，北京还控制燃煤源污染——燃煤从1998年的2800多万吨下降到现在的200多万吨。在机动车方面，北京也开展了“车—油—路”三位一体的垂直治理。

In the past two decades, Beijing has created a high-intensity monitoring network to fight air pollution. It has also strengthened the collaboration with its surrounding areas and identified Beijing, Tianjin as well as 26 other affected cities on the air pollution transmission route. The city has also cut down coal-based pollution, reducing coal burning from 28 million tons in 1998 to some 2 million tons today. In addition, stricter measures to reduce automobile-related pollution have been introduced to the Chinese capital, which is home to over 21 million people. 

动画显示北京地区燃煤使用量在过去20年间降幅明显

Animation shows coal burning in Beijing gas beeb reduced significantly over the last 20 years. /CGTN Photo

“北京在鼓励新能源车上也采取很多措施，包括我知道的，在2022年的冬奥会上会比较大规模地推动新能源车的使用。这个是未来很好的一个方向。”贺克斌说。

"Beijing has done a lot to promote green vehicles. As far as I know, for example, the 2022 Winter Olympics would be a great opportunity to do so. Green vehicles represent the future of automobiles," he said.

同时，北京大力发展绿色交通，通过摇号限制小型燃油车数量，提升油品质量，限制上路机动车数量等措施改善空气质量。

At the same time, Beijing has made great efforts in developing green transport. By controlling the number of cars through a license-plate lottery system, improving gas quality, and limiting the number of vehicles on the road, Beijing has remarkably improved its air quality.

“如果我们今天和2013年来比的话，（变化）天翻地覆。达标天气数量是越来越多了；空气质量，就是PM2.5的浓度是越来越低了。”邹毅感叹道。

"Compared to 2013, the changes in air quality are unprecedented. There are more and more days meeting official air quality standards, with PM 2.5 levels witnessing a significant decline," Zou echoed.

2019年3月，联合国环境署发布《北京二十年大气污染治理历程与展望》，指出以北京市为例的中国在大气环境质量改善方面所做的努力，为全球其它城市提供了值得借鉴的经验。

In March 2019, in its Review of 20 Year's Air Pollution Control in Beijing, the United Nations praised Beijing for its work in improving air quality, saying that it provides valuable lessons for other cities around the world.

“中国正在不断地把本国治理气候环境的成功经验和知识分享给其他国家和地区，以促进环境和空气污染的全球治理。”联合国环境署气候与清洁联盟科学事务官员内森•博格福德•帕内尔说。

"All the experiences and knowledge that China is employing to great effects internally, and bringing more and more knowledge, and giving it to the rest of the world to help speed climate air pollution mitigation," Nathan Borgford-Parnell, UNEP Climate and Clean Alliance, told CGTN.

A long way to go

世界卫生组织2018年的数据显示，全球每10人中就有9人呼吸含有高浓度污染物的空气；每年大约有700万人因接触到污染空气中可渗透到肺部和心血管系统的细微颗粒而死亡。

Figures released by the World Health Organization in 2018 show that nine out of 10 people breathe air containing high levels of pollutants. Around seven million people die every year from exposure to fine particles in polluted air that penetrate deep into the lungs and cardiovascular system.

地面的臭氧是光化学烟雾的一个主要组成部分。空气中过多的臭氧对人类健康造成显著影响——它可导致呼吸问题、引发哮喘、降低肺功能并引起肺部疾病。

Ozone at ground level is one of the major constituents of photochemical smog. Excessive ozone in the air can have a deadly impact on human health. It can cause breathing problems, trigger asthma, reduce the function of lungs and cause lung diseases.

面对日益恶化的环境，许多国家开始寻求环境治理的解决方案。目前，全球300多个城市采取了相关措施，鼓励新能源推广应用。例如，智利政府从中国订购了电动公交车，旨在2040年实现公共交通纯电动化。

Facing a deteriorating environment, many countries have begun to search for solutions. Currently, more than 300 cities around the world have taken measures to promote application of new energy sources. The Chilean government, for example, purchased electric buses from China, aiming to achieve electrification of all buses by 2040.

“从很多方面来讲，电动公交车将极大地改善智利人的生活质量。它们对环境友好，因为在行驶中完全不会污染环境，”智利总统塞巴斯蒂安•皮涅拉高度评价中国制造的电动车。

"In many ways, electric buses will substantially improve the life quality of the Chilean people. They are eco-friendly, because they won't pollute the air when operating," noted Sebastián Piñera, president of Chile.

“2019年是一个很重要的年份，不仅因为中国举办了以关注空气污染为主题的世界环境日活动，还因为许多国家都给自己定下了改善环境的远大目标并为之努力。” 联合国环境署气候与清洁联盟科学事务官员内森•博格福德•帕内尔说。

"2019 is an important year not only because the World Environment Day which was defined by China was about 'Air Pollution', but many countries are working on enhancing their national contribution to increase ambition for mitigating their climate," Borgford-Parnell said. 

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