From the Chinese Press

Cooking and PM2.5

A Beijing official recently said that cooking (that is, the use of liquefied petroleum gas, coal, wood or other fuel to prepare food) increases the PM2.5 index, sparking a heated public debate. PM2.5 refers to particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometer or less suspended in the atmosphere that can be inhaled by humans leading to health complications. Besides, the official suggested Beijing residents' involvement is needed to make the government's clean-air measures a success. His suggestion may sound strange to many people, but we cannot turn a blind eye to the pollution caused by cooking, which is bad for the atmosphere as well as human health, says an article in Beijing Youth Daily. Excerpts:

A study by the Chinese Academy of Sciences shows that the smog that envelops Beijing in winter is caused, to a large extent, by the burning of coal to supply heating to the city's buildings. In summer, the burning of fuels for cooking is responsible for 15 to 20 percent of the air pollution. Therefore what the Beijing official said is not untrue.