Hong Kong's air quality 'worse than ever'

The air quality of Hong Kong is as bad as when records first began to be kept, it has been claimed.

Figures from the country's Environmental Protection Department show that the number of hours that air pollution remained above recommended levels in Hong Kong's major cities rose by 14 per cent last year.

They also indicate that the number of hours air pollution was at dangerous levels in 2008 reached 2000 - the highest since recordings began eight years ago.

Edwin Lau, director of Friends of the Earth Hong Kong, said that only the most polluting particles were examined, which means that "the problem could be even more worrying if the levels of other pollutants were also taken into account".

In contrast, the air quality of Mexico City was singled out last week due to the improvements made since being named as the world's most polluted city in a 1992 United Nations report.