The People’s Daily reported today that almost half of all Chinese cities are relatively or heavily polluted. The reality, of course, is that probably most of the cities would fall into those two categories. With winter looming on the horizon, things are only going to get worse, as power plants fire up to provide central heat for the major buildings of a city, and people in the smaller and older sections start burning untreated coal bricks in their houses. Soon the smell of coal dust will be a permanent part of the environment, and any snow that falls will quickly turn black. Sigh. I sometimes wonder if China will be able to survive its own development.