Ukrainian smog covers eastern provinces and capital, but no threat to health

A fog that spread yesterday over the Lublin province and Mazovia, including Warsaw, came to Poland from Ukraine. "In Ukraine, forests and turf fields are burning next to the Polish border," explained Central Inspectorate for Environmental Protection (GIOS) director Roman Jaworski. "On satellite pictures one can see a cloud of smoke moving from the southeast to the northwest. A period of high pressure has combined with a lack of wind to prevent the cloud's dispersal and has contributed to the smoke's effect." The smog also hit Krakow, where it condensed over the city. Environmental protection services in Krakow warned yesterday that dust pollution had significantly increased. In one district of the city, ecological norms were exceeded by 260%. "Right now we are taking no action. The smoke is of plant origin and, according to our information, there is no threat to public health," said the chief commander of the fire brigade, Witold Maziarz. The smoke may continue to hang over Mazovia until the end of the week. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A3, Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 5) M.T.