Coordinated efforts are needed to clean the air

The lasting regional air pollution in Central and East China indicates that tackling pollution is no longer the fight of a single city but the whole region, says an article in Beijing Youth Daily. Excerpts:

The Beijing environmental authority said 58 enterprises suspended production completely in the capital and another 41 enterprises reduced production, cutting their pollution by 30 percent.

Beijing's pollution is caused by accumulated pollutants emitted not only by polluters in the city, but also from neighboring areas and vice versa.

The emission from burning coal for heat in winter is a significant cause of air pollution. Beijing burns more than 20 million tons of coal, Tianjin 70 million tons and Hebei, the province encircling Beijing and Tianjin, 200 million tons.

Diesel vehicles, large trucks and passenger vehicles running between cities are other big contributors to air pollution.

Although most big factories have already been moved out of Beijing, it does not mean their pollution has disappeared from Beijing.

It will take a long time to solve the problem of air pollution in East and Central China, because it needs coordinated efforts of different industries across the vast region. One city's efforts will not clean its air without the support of neighboring areas.