Report: Most big cities fail on air quality

Most of China's 74 major cities failed to reach the national standards in six key air quality metrics in 2014, the national environmental watchdog said on Monday.

Of the 10 cities with the worst pollution, eight were in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area. Baoding, in Hebei province - the southern neighbor of the capital - topped the list, highlighting the lingering challenges faced by governments in the trilateral zone.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection released its annual report on the air quality of the 74 major cities on Monday, saying 66 of them failed to meet standards for six major airborne pollutants, including the concentration of PM2.5 and nitrogen oxides.