Friday, 22 June 2007
Revisiting China
This is my second trip to China. My first trip was in 1978 at the invitation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. We landed in Beijing and traveled by bus to the Friendship Hotel. I recall that during that trip, we did not pass another vehicle on the road. At that time, the most popular way to travel was by bicycle and every highway was essentially a sea of bicycle traffic. I also remember that the presentations I gave during that visit had to be given at night using a 35 mm slide projector because there were no windows with shades in the building, making it impossible to darken the buildings during the daytime.
Almost 30 years later, here I am again in Beijing. Traffic patterns have changed immensely, mirroring congestion problems faced in the U.S. The glaring sun I faced in 1978 which made it difficult to give slide projector presentations is a distant memory as it is masked by the significant air pollution that plagues Beijing. In fact when we get up each day there is such a haze that you cannot see the tops of the tall buildings. At first I thought this would dissipate during the day, but in my three days here it has not. We have yet to see the sun.
These changes make me think about global environmental sustainability. What role should American civil engineers play in pollution control in countries like China? What sacrifices are we prepared to make to keep the sun shining over Beijing?