Beijing skies turn yellow after biggest sandstorm in a decade

Pollution levels surged as the 'fierce' sandstorm descended on the Chinese capital from the Gobi desert

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  Riders battle the elements in Beijing, China, during the capital's worst sandstorm in a decade. Getty Images

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  High-rise buildings are shrouded in haze during a sandstorm in Beijing, China. Local reports said the sand came from Mongolia. Getty Images

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  Buildings are obscured by a yellow haze during a sandstorm in Beijing, China, on Monday, March 15. Getty Images

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  Visibility was reduced to 500 meters during the sandstorm in Beijing, China. Getty Images

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  A man wearing a protective mask and glasses to keep the grit at bay cycles with his dog, during a sandstorm in Beijing, China. Getty Images

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  China Central Television's distinctive headquarters building, left, is among central business district high-rises shrouded in haze, during a Beijing sandstorm. AFP

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  A woman braves the choking dust during a sandstorm in Beijing, China. The authorities advised residents to stay indoors due to levels of air pollution. Getty Images

Beijing was cloaked in thick yellow smog on Monday and excessively high pollution levels as the worst sandstorm in a decade descended on China's capital from the Gobi desert.

City residents used goggles, masks and hairnets to protect themselves from the choking dust and sand, with landmarks including the Forbidden City partly obscured behind an apocalyptic-looking haze.

The city government ordered schools to cancel outdoor sports and events and advised the public to stay inside where possible, as hundreds of flights were cancelled.

Weather agencies blamed the poor air quality on a sandstorm sweeping across northern China from Mongolia, where authorities there said it had left several dead, before being carried south by winds and reducing visibility in Beijing to less than 500 metres.

Eerie glow

Under heavy skies, which draped buildings in an eerie glow, Beijing residents fretted over the health risks of a storm, which compounded days of hazardous pollution in the capital.

"I feel every breath will give me lung problems," Beijing resident Zhang Yunya told AFP.

Buildings are obscured by a yellow haze during a sandstorm in Beijing, China, on Monday, March 15. Getty Images

Beijing said last year it expected fewer and weaker sandstorms to hit northern China due to its reforestation efforts.

The city pegged its hopes of rebuilding a natural barrier to such phenomena on intensive tree replanting in stripped forest areas, also known as the "Green Great Wall".

A 2019 study published in the journal Nature Sustainability found some two million square miles of vegetation had been added to the surface of the earth since 2000, a quarter of which was contributed by China.

But the impact of those greenbelts is disputed against the prevailing desertification of the country's northwest.

'Very fierce'

Pan Xiaochuan, an environmental health expert, said the lack of recent rain or snow meant the ground was extra dry and made the sandstorm "very fierce."

"If there is less moisture, more dust will be scraped up," he said. "Since the sandstorm is blown from a high altitude, the general windbreak tree belts won't be very effective, so it has been blown over ... very quickly."

Sandstorms blowing into the capital are a result of extreme weather conditions and desertification, said Li Shuo of Greenpeace China.

But he told AFP that "intense" industrial activities had also contributed to bad air in Beijing over recent weeks, with the production of steel, cement and aluminium already overtaking pre-pandemic levels as the economy bounces back into action.