Li Ganjie says the newly strengthened bureau will set tougher targets, especially for air pollution
China is looking to set tougher goals in a new three-year “green” plan to improve air quality and tighten regulations, minister of environmental protection Li Ganjie said on Saturday.
The ministry said the country had exceeded its target set in an air pollution action plan in 2013.Last year, average concentrations of PM 10, a fine particle that is harmful to health, were down by 22 per cent – compared to the target of 10 per cent – in more than 330 cities from 2013. In Beijing, the average concentration of PM 2.5, another harmful particle, was reduced to 58 micrograms per cubic metre last year from close to 90 in 2013, although that was still far from the level of 10 micrograms recommended by the World Health Organisation.
Li said that in the new plan until 2020, some goals could be stricter, but he did not give specific targets for major pollutants as there were still under study.
In its five-year plan until 2020, Beijing set a goal of improving the number of days with clean air to 80 per cent, or roughly 292 days per year. However, Li said that was still a difficult target requiring a great deal more effort.
“In general, our air pollution control is still at the mercy of weather. If the weather helps, the smog is low. If the weather is bad, then the smog becomes worse.
