Stop issuing smog alerts, local weather forecasters told

Veil of grey: People wearing masks cycling past Tiananmen Gate during the smog after a red alert was issued for heavy air pollution in Beijing last month. — Reuters

BEIJING: Chinese authorities have asked an unnamed Chinese province to turn off its early warning alert system for smog to avoid mismatches between environment and meteorological authority forecasts, state media reported.

Nearly three years into a “war on pollution”, large swathes of northern China have been engulfed in smog over the New Year, with dangerous air quality readings in major cities like Beijing, Tianjin and Xian forcing many people to stay indoors.