Beijing promises blue skies for military parade

Steel mills in Beijing and neighboring regions will be shut down or reduce production starting in late August to guarantee quality air for the military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II on Sept 3.

According to mysteel.com, a steel industry consultancy in Shanghai, steelworks in Hebei province's Handan and Tangshan, Liaoning province's Anshan, Henan province's Anyang and Shanxi province's Taiyuan were notified that Beijing will launch a strict anti-air pollution plan in September.

The standard will be like that of last year's APEC period, when six provincial regions launched an air protection project.