上图： STR/法新社/盖蒂图片社，下图： CARL DE SOUZA/法新社/盖蒂图片社

On Dec. 5, 1952, a thick layer of fog settled over the streets of London, blanketing the city. This was no ordinary wintery mist, but rather a noxious haze of sulfur dioxide from coal-fired industrial factories and cookstoves in London homes. London's Great Smog hung in the air for five consecutive days; visibility was reduced to mere feet and cars were abandoned or led off the road by police with traffic flares. It was the "nation's worst air pollution disaster" and remains the deadliest smog event on record. According to the Telegraph, the devastation the smog wrought "only became apparent when undertakers reported that they were running out of coffins and florists had sold all their flowers." In the following three months, an estimated 13,000 people died of respiratory complications.

1952年12月5日，大雾笼罩着整个伦敦城。这不是普通的冬季雾气，而是煤炭燃烧产生的二氧化硫等污染物在城市上空蓄积的结果。伦敦冬季多使用燃煤采暖，市区内还分布有许多以煤为主要能源的火力发电站。伦敦的大雾连续五天弥漫在城市上空。能见度极低，汽车或被限制通行，或在交警的指挥下开着车灯前进。至今，这仍是“英国最为严重、最致命的雾霾污染事件”。《每日电讯报》称，直到“殡仪馆的人说他们用完了所有的棺材，花店卖完了所有的鲜花”后，雾霾的危害才变得异常明显。接下来的三个月，据估计约13000人死于呼吸道并发症。

The hazy scenes of London's Great Smog bear a striking resemblence to modern-day images of China's urban centers on their most polluted days. And though China has never had an event to match those four days in London, its pollution problem is persistent and pervasive. In 2010, air pollutioncontributed to 1.2 million deaths in China. Between 1981 and 2001, particulate levels in its major cities were five times greater than what the United States experienced before 1970. And the problem is worsening at an incredible rate. In 2009, the concentration of particulate pollution in the Chinese city of Harbin averaged 101 micrograms per meter, according to the World Health Organization. Four years later, in October 2013, levels were up tenfold, a new record.

中国许多城市污染最严重的时候和伦敦1952年的雾霾天气惊人的相似。虽然中国从未发生类似伦敦当年的惨痛经历，但中国的污染问题仍旧堪忧。2010年，中国的环境污染致120万人死亡。1981至2001年，中国主要城市的污染颗粒物含量是美国1970年以前的五倍多。这一问题正以惊人的速度恶化。据世界卫生组织称，2009年哈尔滨的污染颗粒物浓度是每立方米101微克。四年后，2013年10月，哈尔滨的污染颗粒物浓度是之前的十倍，创下新高。

This week, Gina McCarthy, the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), said she would be meeting with partners in China in the coming days to address air pollution issues, but was careful to stress that this is not an challenge limited to China. The West, too, has faced hazardous pollution. "We have been there before," she said on Monday, Dec. 2. The comparison bears consideration; what follows is a series of photo pairings -- smog in London then, and in China now.

本周，美国环境保护署（EPA）的新负责人吉娜·麦卡锡表示，她将在接下来的几天与中国的合作伙伴会面，以处理大气污染问题。同时她也强调了这并非只是中国面临的挑战，西方世界也面临着严重的污染。12月2日，她说：“我们也经历过你们今天面临的考验。”对比中西方的污染会令我们反思；接下来是一系列的对比照片——彼时伦敦的雾霾，和此时中国的雾霾。

（来源：中国日报网爱新闻iNews 编辑：丹妮）