Shanxi seeks green development of resource-based province

(chinadaily.com.cn)

Updated: 2021-08-09

North China's Shanxi province will make the local environment a key support for the sustainable and healthy socioeconomic development of its people's happiness, Shanxi Department of Ecology and Environment announced on Aug 5. 

Since last year, Shanxi has taken a further series of measures to make the sky bluer, the land greener and the water clearer across the province.

Statistics showed that the province's average concentration of PM2.5 – a main gauge of air pollution – and the proportion of days with good air quality both ranked second in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region in 2020.

In July this year, in particular, the province's average concentration of PM2.5 was 22 micrograms per cubic meter, which was the best monthly level since it started air quality monitoring.

By implementing the ecological protection and restoration plan for local Lyuliang and Taihang mountains, seven rivers and the Yellow River basin – as well as continuing with its afforestation program – Shanxi reached a forest coverage rate of 23.18 percent last year. 

In terms of water pollution treatment, the water quality at all the national surface water assessment sections of the Fenhe River basin exceeded Grade V in 2020 – the lowest level in China's five-tier system of standards – with the good water quality readings reaching 70.7 percent. 

Moving forward, Shanxi will fully implement its ecological protection and high-quality development strategy for the Yellow River basin. 

It will develop itself into a model of ecological protection in a resource-based province – and become an important green ecological barrier in North China.