A military policeman on duty at the Great Wall of China near Beijing reaches for his nose in reaction to last week's severe dust storm. The storm is now off the Washington coast but has lost much of its severity.

Dust cloud fades over Pacific Ocean

Repeat of 1998's hazy skies unlikely inSouth Sound

JOHN DODGE THE OLYMPIAN

Once you travel 7,000 miles, there's a lot of dilution." -- Richard Stedman, Olympic Air Pollution Control Authority

OLYMPIA -- Remnants of a huge dust storm spawned in China's Gobi Desert 10 days ago and 7,000 miles away have been detected off the Washington coast, scientists said Thursday.

But much of the dust cloud has dissipated during its journey across the Pacific Ocean -- enough so that it's not likely to leave much of a mark here.

"It's not going to be a big event like the one in 1998," said Clifford Maas, an atmospheric sciences professor at the University of Washington in Seattle.

The spring 1998 dust cloud coated Northwest skies in a milky haze, obscuring views of Mount Rainier and boosting air pollution readings in Eastern Washington. That cloud also began in China.

The western United States typically is on the receiving end of one or two Chinese dust storms each year, said Russ Schnell, an atmospheric scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Boulder, Colo.

Last April, a dust cloud from China traveled across the United States to the Atlantic Ocean.

"It shows we're all kind of connected," Schnell said.

The latest arrival appears to have stalled off the Washington coast, where the moist marine air and clouds are washing out the dust, Schnell said.

The remnants of the dust cloud are not likely to pose a health threat, said Richard Stedman, executive director of the Olympic Air Pollution Control Authority.

"Usually the heavier stuff falls out over the Pacific Ocean," he said. "Once you travel 7,000 miles, there's a lot of dilution."

But scientists from the UW and NOAA said the dust cloud illustrates another troubling phenomenon. The same ocean air currents that carry dust from developing countries in Asia to the western United States also carry pollutants such as industrial chemicals, pesticides and aerosols.

"The issue is not so much the dust as the pollution that it's pushing in front of it," Schnell said.

While the latest dust cloud has lost much of its punch, it caused havoc in China, South Korea and Japan last week. Airlines had to ground their planes, and millions suffered respiratory problems.

China has been plagued by dust storms for centuries, but they appear to be growing in severity and intensity with increased soil erosion and instability caused by human activity, deforestation and livestock grazing, Schnell said. An ongoing drought in China has made matters worse.

"It's just like the American Dust Bowl," Schnell said.

John Dodge covers the environment and energy for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5444 or jdodge@olympia.gannett.com.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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