Survey says tougher for northeast to clean its air

Northeastern China, where heavy haze lingered for days, faces a tougher situation in curbing air pollution due to greater pressure on economic growth and a lack of scientific guidance, a survey said on Monday.

Officials from the environmental protection bureaus in northeastern provinces have expressed their urgent need to receive support on air pollution control technology, said Wan Wei, a researcher from Clean Air Asia, a global NGO, which released a survey on air pollution control in China on Monday.

The survey found that many cities in eastern regions such as Shanghai had a clear picture on sources of pollution and drafted targeted control efforts. But provinces in the northeastern region have lagged behind in this respect.