Beijing's air pollution monitoring stations in the downtown area remain where they were, the environmental chief of the Olympic organizing committee said yesterday.

"I am not aware of any of the monitors having been relocated," Yu Xiaoxuan, BOCOG's environmental director, said.

Yu was responding to an article in the Wall Street Journal in February that claimed the Beijing environmental protection bureau had manipulated the air quality index by removing monitoring equipment from heavily polluted areas.

The city has 27 air pollution monitoring stations, more than trippling the number in 1998.

The environmental bureau said last week the city's air quality from January to March was the best in nine years. On 67 days, 73 percent of the total, the index was less than 100 on the Air Pollution Index, which represents a satisfactory level.

The Wall Street Journal claimed authorities in Beijing removed monitoring stations from the densely populated Qianmen area and increased the number in suburban districts, including Huairou, Changping and Shunyi, to manipulate the city's overall air quality index.

Changping and Shunyi will both host Olympic events.

Beijing has spent more than 120 billion yuan ($17.1 billion) over the past decade to improve its air quality, Yu said.

New technologies have been introduced at power plants to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide, while all new vehicles registered in the city are required to confirm with the Euro IV emissions standard, he said.

Also, in the runup to the Olympics, temporary measures will be taken to reduce the number of cars on Beijing's road, limit the output of factories, and restrict construction work, Yu said, adding that decorating work at public buildings will also be stopped to prevent toxic odors.

Last month, the International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s medical commission said the air in Beijing will not pose a threat to athletes. Its findings were based on a study conducted between Aug. 8 and 29 last year, the corresponding period to this summer's Games.

The commission said some competitors in outdoor endurance events might be at some risk due to poor air quality or bad weather conditions, but added the IOC's board will decide later if any events need to be postponed or rescheduled.

(China Daily April 4, 2008)