The difference between this photo of Beijing's most famous landmark on a clear summer's day, now shrouded in filthy smog is a stark portrayal of the record-breaking toxic pollution blanketing China's capital.

The air pollution hit a record earlier this month, with pollution 45 times the recommended safety levels, causing widespread public outrage, grounded flights and leaving many with health problems housebound.

beijing extreme pollution

Beijing's mayor Wang Anshun has promised action including restrictions on car sales and legislation to take 180,000 old vehicles, which churn out noxious gases, off the road.

Coal-boilers will be dumped in favour of new clean energy solutions, he promised, adding: "We will speed up the construction of a beautiful city with blue skies, green earth and clean water."

But these plans have also incensed many of the city's citizens, arguing the measures will hit Beijing's poorest, who drive the old cars, and use the coal-burners.

Reuters reported that expats had begun to dub the city "Greyjing" or "Beige-jing".

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  • Air Pollution In Beijing

    BEIJING, CHINA - JANUARY 23: Severe pollution obscures the skyline on January 23, 2013 in Beijing, China. The air quality in Beijing on Wednesday hit serious levels as smog blanketed the city. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-RELIGION-BUDDHISM

    Monks from a Buddhist university take photos on a clear day in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on January 24, 2013. . AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

  • Air Pollution In Beijing

    BEIJING, CHINA - JANUARY 23: A woman wearing the scarf ride a bicycle through a panda sculpture during severe pollution on January 23, 2013 in Beijing, China. The air quality in Beijing on Wednesday hit serious levels again, as smog blanketed the city. (Photo by Feng Li/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-ECONOMY-MANUFACTURING

    A man smokes a cigarette as he sits in Tiananmen Square on a clear day in Beijing on January 24, 2013. AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

  • Air Pollution In Beijing

    BEIJING, CHINA - JANUARY 23: Severe pollution obscures the skyline on January 23, 2013 in Beijing, China. The air quality in Beijing on Wednesday hit serious levels as smog blanketed the city. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-ECONOMY-MANUFACTURING

    A policeman walks down stairs past tourists making their way to Tiananmen Gate in Beijing on January 24, 2013. China's . AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

  • Air Pollution In Beijing

    BEIJING, CHINA - JANUARY 23: A women wearing the mask rides a bicycle on the street during severe pollution on January 23, 2013 in Beijing, China. The air quality in Beijing on Wednesday hit serious levels again, as smog blanketed the city. (Photo by Feng Li/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-RELIGION-BUDDHISM

    Monks from a Buddhist university take photos on Tiananmen Square in Beijing on January 24, 2013. AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

  • Two men wearing masks walk on an elevated pedestrian bridge near Beijing's Central Business District on a hazy day, in China, Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan)

  • CHINA-ECONOMY-MANUFACTURING

    A woman takes a photo of herself as she stands on a sunny day in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on January 24, 2013. AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-ENVIRONMENT-THEME-POLLUTION

    Pollution readings from the US Embassy (upper) and the local government shows hazardous levels of air pollution in Beijing on January 23, 2013. China's capital Beijing will strengthen measures to combat pollution, amid public anger over the dangerous air quality in the sprawling metropolis. At the height of recent pollution, Beijing authorities said readings for PM2.5 -- particles small enough deeply to penetrate the lungs -- hit 993 micrograms per cubic metre, almost 40 times the World Health Organisation's safe limit. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-RELIGION-BUDDHISM

    Monks from a Buddhist university take photos on Tiananmen Square in Beijing on January 24, 2013. . AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

  • Air Pollution In Beijing

    BEIJING, CHINA - JANUARY 23: A woman wearing a mask walks past the CCTV Building during severe pollution on January 23, 2013 in Beijing, China. The air quality in Beijing on Wednesday hit serious levels as smog blanketed the city. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

  • CHINA-ECONOMY-MANUFACTURING

    People perform t'ai chi in a park in Beijing on January 24, 2013. AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones (Photo credit should read Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)