Local News

Kitakyushu announced a photochemical smog alert in two wards of the city on the 22nd, the first such alert in Japan this year. In addition to calling on the citizens to refrain from physical exertion out of doors, they asked 27 businesses with large plants to cut emissions 20%. The smog is created by photochemical oxidants, which are harmful to the health. The situation in Kyushu worsened over the course of the week, as Kiyama-cho in Saga Prefecture, and Ogori and Tachiarai-machi in Fukuoka Prefecture announced their first-ever smog alerts.