Beijing may miss target for air quality

Smog means the capital's annual goal to reduce pollutants could be hard to achieve, official says

Frequent spells of smog, which has hit Beijing four times since last month, may make it difficult for the capital to achieve its annual air quality improvement goal, a municipal official said on Sunday.

Beijing has set a target of cutting the concentration of PM2.5 - particulate matter with a diameter of less than 2.5 microns that can penetrate the lungs and harm health - by 5 percent year-on-year.