摘要
As the capital city of Gansu Province, Lanzhou has in recent years earned itself a fame of the most unwelcome kind. In 1998 the city was awarded the title of Most Polluted City on Earth from the Washington-based World Resources Institute, Acombination of coal burning exhaust emissions and industrial output had effected Lanzhou's air quality to such an extent that local government officials were pointing out that the pollution was not only damaging people's health but was also preventing investment and people with expertise from flowing into the city.