SOCAAR is pleased to announce a special seminar by Professor Tong Zhu from 
Peking University, Beijing on Friday, Feb 15th at 2pm.  This is a very exciting 
opportunity to hear about the extreme air pollution that Beijing is currently 
experiencing. 

Please note the different seminar location - Wallberg Building 215. 

Air Pollution in Beijing and the North China Plain:
Formation Processes and Health Impacts

Professor Tong Zhu
Peking University, Beijing

Beijing, a megacity with 20 million populations, has been experiencing severe air 
pollution in recent years. Since 1999, systematic air pollution control measures 
have been introduced, especially before and during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. 
However, the challenge of air pollution control in Beijing is unprecedented. This 
is because Beijing is located at the north edge of the North China Plain, a 
region with intensive air pollution emissions due to active human activities.

To understand the transport and transformation processes in regions 
surrounding Beijing, the North China Plain, and to formulate regional air pollution 
controlling policy for the Beijing Olympics, an international collaborative project, 
CAREBEIJING (Campaigns of Air Quality Research in Beijing and Surrounding 
Regions) led by Peking University was carried out 2006, 2007, and 2008. Based 
on the findings, regional coordinated air pollution control measures were 
proposed and implemented before and during Beijing Olympics.

In the meantime, short-term health effects of air pollution in Beijing were 
studied based on panel type study design, on schoolchildren, health young 
adults, and elderly with cardiovascular disease. Major findings of the formation 
processes and health impacts of atmospheric pollution in megacity Beijing and 
the North China plain, and analysis about the main factors lead to the most 
recent severe air pollution in Beijing, will be presented.

FRIDAY, February 15, 2013, 2 - 3 pm
Wallberg Building, 200 College Street, Room 215


This seminar will be recorded and will be available after the talk at the following 
site: 
http://www.socaar.utoronto.ca/collaboration/SOCAAR_Seminar_Series.htm
Recordings of past SOCAAR seminars can also be found here.