Local officials need to be held accountable for bad air quality

WITHIN THE PAST 10 DAYS, sulfur dioxide levels in the air have exceeded 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter three times in Linfen, North China's Shanxi province, yet the local officials did not issue any warnings. Beijing News comments:

On Jan 4, when almost all major media outlets nationwide reported the high amounts of sulfur dioxide in the smog, a vice-director of the local environmental protection bureau was reported as saying, "Linfen has established a warning system for sulfur dioxide and has been monitoring its density in the air."

However, this time, when being asked about the warning system, the same vice-director responded: "Which city has such a system? Tell me!"