An ode to 'blue sky' days

Here are  the questions of the day when it comes to air quality and the Beijing Summer Olympic Games: Do you believe your eyes? Or do you believe your ears?

That is because what you see out the window does not match what Chinese officials say you should be seeing.

Today is a good — but not clear — example. I took the accompanying photos from my 14th floor office window overlooking the Avenue of Everlasting Peace, Beijing’s main drag. Air quality is pretty bad. I can barely see past the Second Ring Road, which is three long blocks away. Looking East, I can’t see the Third Ring Road.

Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, meeting the press in an annual news conference (that is correct: he meets the Beijing press corps just once a year), was asked about air quality. An NBC television reporter began his question noting that an Ethiopian world-record marathoner decided this week not to take part in the Beijing Games marathon, citing the bad air quality. Read my story from yesterday on this topic here.

“Especially on a day like that which we have in Beijing right now,” the reporter went on, “and the Olympics so close at hand, what would you all say to the athletes of other countries and their governments as to the quality of air by the time the Olympics arrive this August?”

Yang responded exactly in the following way:

“I believe most athletes who are going to take part in the Olympic Games in Beijing are satisfied with the air quality, environment and sports facilities in Beijing. They have full confidence in these conditions.

“It’s up to debate whether China is a strong sports country or a major sports country. But there is one thing for sure: Many athletes in the world have broken world records in Beijing. If they can’t break world records in other places, maybe they can come to Beijing, where they will have better luck.”

“China takes climate change seriously. And the Chinese government has taken a full range of effective measures to tackle climate change. I believe that the air quality will only become better and better in Beijing.”

This comes a day after Zhang Lijun, the deputy chief of the State Environmental Protection Administration, also said air quality is getting better. He repeated that China has seen the number of “blue sky" days increase from just 100 in 1998 to 246 last year.

That point, however, needs some clarification. When Chinese officials talk about “blue sky” days, they don’t mean days when the sky is really blue. They mean days when sunshine can penetrate the haze and create a shadow. The sky is still an icky gray. We do get occasional clear days in Beijing when the sky is blue but they are a tiny fraction of the 246 “blue sky” days.

So there you have it. Are you going to believe what you see? Or believe what you are told?

Oh, and if you’re a suspicious sort, and want to check the facts, be forewarned that if you open up this webpage that used to offer a daily reading of air pollution levels in Beijing, it now comes up completely blank. Apparently the state environmental bureau doesn’t think this is useful information anymore with tens of thousands of people descending on the Chinese capital.

Just enjoy your “blue sky" day, like today, and be done with it.