Moderately Bueno!

Mexico City air is a little better than it used to be

Two decades ago, Mexico City's air was widely deemed the worst on the planet. Today, while the city of 20 million is still one of the world's most polluted, it's no longer top dog. (Several cities in China now dominate the charts.) A concerted effort to clear the Mexican capital's air led to the dismantling of a major oil refinery in 1991, the phaseout of leaded fuel, a restriction on the number of vehicles allowed inside the city on any given day, and the introduction of bus lanes. Respiratory problems are still prevalent, but aren't as bad as they used to be. Ground-level ozone pollution is now only a problem about 80 percent of the time. Suspended pollutant particles are only at unacceptable levels one day out of three. A Canadian resident of the city sums it up: "It's still bad, but it's much better than it used to be." We'll guzzle sangria to that! Of course, we were going to guzzle sangria anyway.