Beijing’s API broke the 200 mark today for the first time since May 29th.

Today’s API reading of 246 – corresponding to a PM10 concentration of 382 ug/m^3 – would be characterized by the US EPA as “very unhealthy”:

Here in China, this air quality is simply referred to as:

北京2008-12-09的API指数为246，空气质量级别Ⅳ1 级,今天北京空气中的首要污染物为可吸入颗粒物，空气质量状况中度污染。

Translation: “Beijing API on 12/9/2008 is 246, air quality level IV1. Today’s primary pollutant is inhalable particles. The air quality status is moderate-heavy polluted.”

Sources and a brief discussion of US AQI vs. Chinese API follow:

Sources:

Beijing API: http://datacenter.mep.gov.cn/TestRunQian/air/airCityMain.jsp?city=%B1%B1%BE%A9
Conversion of Chinese API to PM10 concentration: http://www.mep.gov.cn/quality/background.php
US AQI pollutant concentration breakpoints: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg/t1/fr_notices/airqual.pdf. For PM10, the breakpoints are almost identical to China’s:

(Above image, US breakpoints. Below image, China’s breakpoints)

More info on PM10:
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.aqguidepart
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=particle.airborne

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 9th, 2008 at 3:09 pm and is filed under air pollution, api, beijing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.