As China Races to Clear Air, U.S. Distributes Face Masks to Athletes

Less than three weeks before the Olympics, Beijing has begun pulling cars from the roads, opening new subway lines, and staggering work hours in a last-minute effort to curb air pollution. The new measures, in effect from July 20 to September 20, allow cars on the road on alternate days, depending on whether license plates end in odd or even digits. Beijing also has put 2,000 new buses into operation to discourage car use and since July 1 has banned trucks that don’t meet emissions standards, leaving some store owners complaining that they can’t restock shelves. These measures follow earlier actions to halt building construction, relocate polluting factories, and plant millions of trees. The U.S. Olympic Committee is taking no chances, however: It has issued athletes a high-tech carbon-filter face mask, developed in secret over the last two years. While there is no official stance on face masks, the spectacle of foreign athletes wearing them at the Olympics may provoke the ire of the games’ hosts.