In Pictures

Worst smog of the winter envelops Beijing

More than 250,000 people in China’s biggest cities could have their lives cut short from high levels of air pollution.

Beijing has issued its highest smog alert of the year after pollution reached hazardous levels. [Andy Wong/AP]

30 Nov 2015

Authorities in the Chinese capital have warned of “severe pollution” and advised the city’s 20 million inhabitants to stay indoors.

Beijing has been shrouded in grey smog since Friday, reducing visibility to a few hundred metres.

Some pollution readings in the city have reached 22 times the level considered safe by the World Health Organization – despite commitments from the government to improve the environment.

Beijing and many other northern cities in China are notorious for their winter smog, which is caused by a combination of air pollution and weather conditions.

More than a quarter of a million people in China’s biggest cities could have their lives cut short by high levels of air pollution, according to a recent joint study by Peking University and Greenpeace.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection has forecast severe pollution for Beijing and other areas until Tuesday, when strong winds are expected to clear some pollutants.

Smog has engulfed large parts of the country despite efforts to clean up the foul air. [Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters]

Beijing plans to ramp up its already tough car emission standards by 2017 in an effort by one of the world's most polluted cities to improve its often hazardous air quality. [Reuters]

A woman sells paper kites at Tiananmen Square on a day with poor air quality. [Mark Schiefelbein/AP]

The Forbidden City seen through the haze. [Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters]

Beijing's Environmental Protection Bureau warned that poor air quality could continue in the coming days. [Rolex Dela Pena/EPA]

Some of the worst smog of the winter enveloped Beijing on November 29 where air pollution levels are nearly 15 times the safety limit set by the World Health Organisation, according to US figures. [Rolex Dela Pena/EPA]