'Smog Police' Hit the Streets to Combat Beijing's Pollution Problem

After over a week of intense smog, all of us in Beijing are finally able to take a breath of fresh(ish) air. But we’ve been through this before, and we know that the pesky pollution will return to the capital before too long. 

Well, to combat the problem Cai Qi , Beijing’s acting mayor, has come up with a new plan to deal with Beijing's smog. That’s right “environmental police” are going to hit the streets to fight, not crime, but pollution. The smog police will be on the prowl, hunting for Beijingers who are barbequing outdoors, burning garbage and more, BBC reports.  

"Open-air barbecues, garbage incineration, biomass burning, dust from roads – these acts of non-compliance with regulations are actually the result of lax supervision and weak law enforcement," Cai said.

READ MORE: Eerie Timelapse Video Shows Smog Envelop Beijing

In addition, Cai vows to cut down on coal consumption by 30 percent in 2017, stating that 500 high-polluting factories will be closed and that improvements will be made to 2,500 others.

Starting next month, 300,000 high-polluting vehicles will also be banned from driving on Beijing’s roads. 

Will these new efforts make a difference? We certainly hope so, but we suppose only time will tell.