Tina Huang

Dr. Liu
Comprehensive Chinese
12/21/15
AQI (Air Quality Index)

AQI is an index for reporting daily air quality. It tells people how clean/polluted the air is.
It always tells people what associated health effects might be a concern. AQI is a range from 0 to
500, all color coordinated. 0 to 50 (green) is considered good, 51 to 100 (yellow) is still
moderate, 101 to 150 (orange) is unhealthy to people who are more sensitive. Anything higher,
151 to 200 (red) is unhealthy, 201 to 250 (purple) is very unhealthy, and 301 to 500 (maroon) is
considered hazardous.

Here is a table of last weeks AQI comparison between Boston and Beijing.
Date

Boston

Beijing

12/7/15

67 PM (moderate)

183.2 PM (unhealthy)

12/8/15

32 PM (good)

296 PM (very unhealthy)

12/9/15

46 PM (good)

261 PM (very unhealthy)

12/10/15

38 PM (good)

96.8 PM (moderate)

12/11/15

63 PM (moderate)

124 PM (sensitive-unhealthy)

Currently 12/21/15
-Boston is at 38 (GOOD)
-Beijing is at 442 (HAZARDOUS)

Causes of Beijings HAZARDOUS air pollution levels:

In Beijing, the air is mainly polluted by the coal pollution resulting from heating, direct and indirect
vehicle emissions, dust pollution, industrial emissions, rural straw burning, and pollutions from
districts surrounding Beijing.

Resources:
Air Quality Index (AQI) Basics. (n.d.). Retrieved December 21, 2015, from
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=aqibasics.aqi
Beijing Air Pollution: Real-time PM2.5 Air Quality Index (AQI). (n.d.). Retrieved December 21,
2015, from http://aqicn.org/city/beijing/
Boston Air Pollution: Real-time PM2.5 Air Quality Index (AQI). (n.d.). Retrieved December 21,
2015, from http://aqicn.org/city/boston/
What is the main cause of air pollution in Beijing? (n.d.). Retrieved December 22, 2015, from
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-main-cause-of-air-pollution-in-Beijing
Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Greenhouse gas emissions are gases that trap heat in the atmosphere. It is a gaseous
compound in the atmosphere that is capable of absorbing infrared radiation.

Breaking it down:

-Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most prevalent greenhouse gas emission. It enters the atmosphere
through burning fossil fuels, solid waste, trees, and wood products. Carbon dioxide makes up 82% of
the greenhouse gases emissions.
-Methane (CH4) is the second most prevalent greenhouse gas emission. It is emitted during the
production and transport of coal, natural gas, and oil. Methane makes up 10% of the greenhouse gas
emissions.
-Nitrous oxide (N2O) is the third most prevalent greenhouse gas emission. It is emitted during
agricultural and industrial activities, as well as combustion of fossil fuels and solid waste. Nitrous
oxide makes up 5% of the greenhouse gas emissions.
-Fluorinated gases are the least prevalent greenhouse gas emissions but are not insignificant. These
gases include hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride are
synthetic greenhouse gases emitted from the industrial processes. These fluorinated gases makes up
3% of the greenhouse gas emissions.

What you can do to help:

There are ways to lessen the amount of greenhouse gas emissions:
-Recycling: there is over 100 billion plastic bags wasted every year
-Saving energy: you can do so by trying to conserve electricity. Using Energy Star products use less
electricity.
-Use reusable energy

Resource:
Greenhouse Gas Emissions. (n.d.). Retrieved December 23, 2015, from
http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/ghgemissions/
What You Can Do. (n.d.). Retrieved December 23, 2015, from
http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/