Beijing has achieved dramatic success in combatting air pollution, producing equivalent results over 20 years as London did in 30 years and Los Angeles in 60 years, according to Mayor Chen Jining.
Chen, also the deputy secretary of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, spoke at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office in Beijing on Sept. 19. He said the Chinese capital stands as a shining example of clearing up air pollution for other cities around the world.
According to the mayor, Beijing's air quality has been improved as the city see more blue skies. As opposed to seeing the blue skies only during special national and international events like the APEC summit, Beijing now enjoys clean air year-round, Chen said.
Beijing has cut the annual average level of PM2.5 by 43% compared to that of 2013. During the first eight months this year, the average concentration of PM2.5 in Beijing was 42 micrograms per cubic meter, and down to a record-low of 23 in August. The city's efforts in combatting air pollution received high praise from the United Nations Environment Program.
Chen pointed out that the city's air pollution control efforts have three major aspects: adjusting energy mix, optimizing industrial structure, and reducing vehicle emissions.
Beijing expanded it coal-to-gas and coal-to-electricity projects to adjust energy structure. It has capped coal consumption at 4 million tons a year, down from 22.7 million tons in previous years, and the city eliminated coal consumption in its plain areas. Currently, the use of clean energy in the city accounts for over 96% of its total energy consumption.
In order to optimize the industrial structure, Beijing took efforts to promote the development of tertiary and service industry. By the end of the first half of 2019, the proportion of the tertiary industry's added value in the local GDP surpassed 82%. Last year, the output value of five major energy-intensive industries, such as petroleum, steel, and chemicals, accounted for 8.3% of the total industrial enterprises with annual revenue of 20 million yuan or more, down from 26.5% in 2001. The city also closed down 11,000 heavily polluting enterprises.
Finally, Beijing mulled over polies to control vehicles and increase the proportion of electrical vehicles. Among the 100,000 new license plates issued in Beijing every year, about 60,000 are for new energy cars, which is the highest ratio among large cities across the world. From 2013 to 2017, more than 21.6 million old motor vehicles with high emissions were weeded out.
"Beijing's struggle against air pollution could be tougher in the future, and the city is willing to take every small step to control air pollution, and achieve further improvement in air quality," the mayor said.
