The blue sky is reflected in a tranquil lake in Yangquan. [Photo/Yangquan Evening News]

The number of annual days with good air quality in Yangquan, North China's Shanxi province, increased from 221 in 2019 to 261 in 2021, and the local concentrations of PM2.5 and sulfur dioxide have both declined for five consecutive years, according to statistics from the Shanxi Department of Ecology and the Environment. 

This is a result of the city's efforts to prevent and control air pollution and improve air quality in recent years.

Yangquan has issued a series of plans for comprehensive, scientific and targeted air pollution control.

A clean river flows under a bridge against the clear sky in Yangquan. [Photo/Yangquan Evening News]

It has advanced the relocation of heavily polluting enterprises in urban built-up areas and surrounding areas, the comprehensive treatment of industrial furnaces and volatile organic compounds, and the management of pollutant discharge permits to reduce pollution sources.

The city has promoted central heating, cleaned up scattered coal and coal-fired facilities in prohibited areas, and carried out boiler renovation so as to boost clean heating.

To make the transportation sector more environmentally friendly, Yangquan has promoted railway transportation, strengthened the management of motor vehicle emissions and the quality supervision of vehicle oil products, banned trucks that do not meet national emissions standards, and encouraged the use of new energy vehicles.

To reduce dust pollution, the city has improved the treatment of open-pit mines, gangue mountains, and the urban and rural environment, as well as conducted urban greening projects.