Beijing, nation get breath of fresh air

Beijing residents experienced a December unlike any in recent memory, with the air quality as good as in southern coastal regions like tropical Hainan island. The clean air placed the capital for the first time among the 10 best cities for air quality, the top environment authority said on Thursday.

Like the capital's, the country's air quality also underwent improvements in 2017, the Ministry of Environmental Protection said.

In 2017, the average concentration of PM2.5 - particulate matter that measures 2.5 microns or less and is dangerous to humans - in 338 cities in China had been reduced by 6.5 percent from 2016 levels, reaching 43 micrograms per cubic meter, the ministry said. There were 284 blue sky days last year, it said.