Smog fills the air over the streets of Beijing
Officials in China are dealing with a serious problem that's affecting people's health.
At certain times, the air in big cities such as Shanghai is so polluted people cannot go outside.
The dirty air, known as smog, is a combination of weather conditions, fumes and smoke from cars and factories.
Rob and Finn discuss what is being done to clean up the air and explain some pollution-related vocabulary.
This week's question:
According to research by the World Health Organisation, which country has the city with the world's worst air pollution? Is it:
a) China
b) India
c) Iran
Listen to the programme to find out the answer.
Listen
Air pollution in China
End of Section
Vocabulary
- air pollution
particles that make the air dirty and difficult to breathe
- smog
mixture of smoke, gases, chemicals and fog
- choking
(here) preventing people from breathing properly
- contaminated
made dirty or less pure
- pea-souper
a slang term used to describe poor quality air that is difficult to see in
- fumes
strong-smelling and dangerous gas
- industrialised
having lots of heavy industry
- poisonous
very harmful and could cause death
- asthma
medical condition that makes it hard to breathe
- greener
(here) better for the environment
- renewable energy
power made from natural resources that never get used up
