In Beijing, 'extremely hazardous' levels of pollutants detected

Smog in Beijing on Monday.
(Image credit: YouTube.com/CBSEveningNews)

While world leaders discussed climate change and air pollution in Paris on Monday, residents of Beijing were breathing in thick smog and encouraged by the government to stay indoors.

Beijing saw its worst air pollution for 2015 on Monday, with extremely hazardous levels of pollutants detected around the city; in one suburb, particle readings hit 976 micrograms per cubic meter — more than 900 micrograms higher than the safe level. China is the world's biggest total carbon polluter, with two-thirds of the country's energy coming from coal. On days like Monday, the government limits activities at construction sites and factories, and increases street cleaning, CBS News reports. The government blamed the intense smog on high humidity and a lack of wind. Catherine Garcia

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.