Pollution battle reaching new level as air gets clearer

Beijing's environmental watchdog has vowed to further bolster cross-regional control of air pollution and to better manage pollution sources at a more detailed level as the capital saw continuous improvement of its air quality in 2018.

The capital saw the average density of PM2.5 particulate matter drop by about 12 percent year-on-year to 51 micrograms per cubic meter in 2018, said Liu Baoxian, deputy head of the environmental monitoring center at the Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau. Liu spoke at a news conference on Friday.

Other major air pollutants also decreased. The concentration of sulfur dioxide, for example, stood at 6 mg per cubic meter, down by 25 percent from 2017. Its density remained below 10 mg/cu m, even during the cold months when the increased need for heating can drive up pollution, Liu said.