Job Discussion Forums

[gloomyGumi]

I was about to take a Chengdu deal when I was told that ıts aır qualıty ıs worse than Los Angeles' which, for anyone not famılıar wıth ıt, is pretty brown-out NASTY. My wıfe and I wouldnt wanna end up unwıttıngly lıvıng ın a severely polluted area---had no ıdea untıl just by chance at the last mınute about chengdu for example. Very hıgh partıculate-matter/suspended partıculates there due to apparently Chongqing İron Works downwind or somethıng lıke that..... who knew?

[zactherat]

[Ariadne]

Big cities, small towns, factory cities in the middle of nowhere... it's tough to escape bad air in China. When I lived in Zhuhai the furniture and floors collected a black film in less than a day after cleaning. It's a lot better in Fujian. There are even birds here! Never saw or heard birds in Zhuhai.

Various local government reports regarding air quality might not be entirely truthful. It can be very tricky getting the information you need to make your choice of work locations. Individual FTs are not always a reliable source either because people notice and react to pollution differently. Some are oblivious and some are ultra sensitive.

Don't know what to advise. Xin Jiang maybe? But then they'd probably open a factory right next door to your school or begin a two year demolition and construction project across the road.


.

[LeopoldBloom]

If those replies were not helpful enough, I'll offer my five pence.

Air pollution in China is a good thing to be concerned about because it can be horrendous. I live in Vietnam which ranks 123rd in air quality in the world of countries ranked, just maybe five positions above China.

How does it compare? The air in Vietnam is far better. China is exponentially, exponentially a air quality nightmare. I lived there for five years.

The places to avoid are especially in the North. Luoyang, Henan, Beijing Gansu, Anhui, etc. Stay away from the North of China. Don't even consider it no matter what they say about the river blowing it out or whatever; it's complete bs.

Zhuhai, Zhanjiang, Fujian and places like that are fairly decent and far better than most other places in China. far south Guangxi in parts too. Shop around there.

Bloom.

[Dedicated]

Try Qingdao on the coast.

[Shroob]

Coastal cities will be your best bet.

Off the top of my head the least polluted areas/cities are:
Xiamen
Kunming
Hainan

[chinatimes]

Which is worse, consuming 100 pounds of sugar or 100 pounds of candy?

It's 100 pounds in the end, and I would stay away from either. It doesn't matter where it is. What's important is that you avoid exposure. If you live indoors and don't walk around a lot, then your lungs will thank you. You can live almost anywhere.

If you have to walk a lot, commute, walk a lot more, and then do the same coming back, then you are increasing the exposure you have with bad air (even if it is a fraction).

Spend more time worrying about the job, where you will live relative to where the school is, and where you need to go off hours.

Everyone will want to travel anyway, location ain't no thang yo.

[Laoshi1950]

I know that the OP asked for a list of China's least-polluted cities. In my years in China, I have worked in five different cities - Nanchang (Jiangxi), Wenzhou (Zhejiang), Wuhan (Hubei), and now Beijing. All suffered from appalling air pollution on a regular basis. But, of that small sample, the "least-polluted" was Wenzhou, on the coast.

According to the World Health Organization (September 2011), Lanzhou in Gansu Province, is China's most-polluted provincial capital city.

The WHO report focuses on air particles known as PM10s (microscopic vehicle and dust specks of less than 10 micrometers, in 121 micrograms per cubic meter).

The China Briefing website (http://www.china-briefing.com) says that the WHO data was compiled from China�s own official sources, the China Statistical Yearbook. That website asserts that the Yearbook is not noted for its overall accuracy and has a tendency to massage data in the State�s favor.

The WHO recommends an upper limit of 20mcg for PM10s, which can cause serious respiratory problems including lung cancer.

The WHO lists the 12 most-polluted cities as -

(PM10mcg)
1. Lanzhou 150
2. Xining 141
3. Urumqi 140
4. Jinan 123
5. Beijing 121
6. Xi'an 113
7. Hefei 111
8. Chengdu 111
9. Shenyang 110
10. Taiyuan 106
11.Wuhan 105
12. Chongqing 105

On a more 'positive' note, the least-polluted cities measured by their PM10 levels were listed, in order, as 1. Haikou (38 ), 2. Hong Kong (47), 3. Lhasa (50), 4. Nanning (50), 5. Fuzhou (64), 6. Kunming (67).

[chinesearmy]

[GlobetrekkerESL]

It seems Guangyuan and other small towns in Sichuan at least a couple hours from Chengdu and Chongqing might offer good air and mountain hiking though tough to communicate and do business. I only know of Guangyuan city since that's where I recently accepted a job offer. There are only a small handful of foreigners there and it's probably a very challenging place for a first timer in China due to not having anyone to help me learn and the locals not accustomed to seeing visitors so I'm a bit nervous despite having taught several years already in Korea and traveling everywhere except the mainland of China. I'm going to be teaching a small group of high school aged level 2 kids a college prep curriculum coming from the wealthy families who are looking to send their kids out of country to university. There are a whopping 2,400,000 people in Guangyuan city, but no Western style anything yet other than a Dico's according to what the previous teacher I'm in contact with told me. She said very nice air and hiking trails and agriculture are there along with a traditional market center. I expect a 2.4 million stares, but hope they are more open to talk and acknowledge me than what I experienced in Korea.

Can anyone fill us in on Guangyuan and Sichuan?

[chinadad]

I live in Sichuan - my work is very travel orientated - and i drive through Gaungyaun about 8 times a year. Like a lot of N Sichuan extremely polluted - you just have to read the wiki on the city -

[doogsville]

[Banner41]

I loved Chengdu....pollution and all. (Really wasn't as bad as some of the other big cites but Chegdu is ambitious to become a first tier city so my guess is it will get worse)

[gloomyGumi]

thx 2 all and 2 all a goodnıght!

pollutıon ıs def a problem ın Chına and now I belıeve ıt even more after readıng these posts.

who wouldve known out of the way places lıke Urumqi would be so polluted?

[peter50]

"1. Lanzhou 150
2. Xining 141
3. Urumqi 140
4. Jinan 123
5. Beijing 121
6. Xi'an 113
7. Hefei 111
8. Chengdu 111
9. Shenyang 110
10. Taiyuan 106
11.Wuhan 105
12. Chongqing 105
"

These tips are really helpful...