Air clears but haze threat remains

Shanghai's air quality turned better yesterday thanks to a cold front and favorable wind conditions, but the city may still encounter intermittent haze this week, forecasters said. The Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Center predicted a good air quality this afternoon with the air quality index dropping to below 100 because of the high winds. In the morning, the index is expected to be at 110 and 130, indicating a lightly polluted air quality. The major pollutant will be PM2.5. The air quality index dropped below 200 yesterday, marked by moderately polluted level in the morning and lightly polluted level in the afternoon, ending Shanghai’s current round of severe pollution. The air quality index dropped to 113 at 5pm, with the density of tiny PM2.5 particles at 75.1 micrograms per cubic meter. “The northwest winds dropped the mercury, but also dispersed pollutants, and the increasing winds have improved air quality and visibility,” said Zhu Jiehua, a service officer of the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau. The rare sight of the blue sky and sunshine prompted some residents to drop the face masks and embrace the good weather. “I enjoyed a cup of coffee with my friends at a cafe on Yongjia Road and bathed in sunshine in the afternoon due to the good weather, which lightened my mood after a week of pollution,” said Yao Yifan. The possibility of haze remains but another big and serious smoggy weather like last week is unlikely, Zhu said. The temperature will climb slightly from today. The cold front is not strong, and the city should have four cloudy to sunny days this week under the control of high pressure. Today, the high temperature is predicted to be 9 degrees Celsius, rising to 13 degrees on Friday. The good weather should end on Sunday amid a drizzle forecast for the weekend.