In December 2023, China rolled out its third national action plan on air pollution prevention and control, corresponding with the nation's goals during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period. This updated plan sets relatively conservative objectives, removing the goal that "the proportion of good air quality days must be no less than 87.5%".
This latest plan expands its focus to 82 cities, up from 80 in 2018, setting varied improvement goals for different regions. The Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and surrounding areas face the most stringent targets. The Fenwei Plain follows in the level of strictness, while the Yangtze River Delta has the least severe targets.
For the first time, simultaneous reduction targets for nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been set by this plan.
While the plan largely retains the ambitions of its predecessors, it adopts a more cautious approach, possibly to align with economic recovery strategies. Goals for 2025 include reducing PM2.5 levels in cities at the prefectural level and above by 10% compared to 2020 levels, (meaning PM2.5 concentration should be no more than 29.7μg/m³, a target already achieved in 2022). The plan only sets a baseline target for the air quality control, shifting focus from maximizing good air quality days to a minimum standard where heavily polluted days must not exceed 1%.
Compared to 2018, geographical adjustments have also been made. The addition of 7 cities in Henan and 6 in Shandong to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and surrounding targeted regions aims to address severe air pollution in central and southern Henan and southern Shandong. This adjustment bridges the geographical gap between this region and the Yangtze River Delta, promoting a unified governmental approach to tackle air pollution.
Meanwhile, several cities in the southern Yangtze River Delta, particularly in Zhejiang and Anhui, have been excluded, reducing their numbers each by five as compared to 2018. Moreover, cities in Shanxi have been reclassified to the Fenwei Plain, benefiting from milder PM2.5 improvement targets and consequently experiencing a reduction in administrative costs compared to those in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and surrounding areas.
Cities Involved in the National Air Pollution Control Action Plan
Source: Policy documents Note: Text in yellow indicates adjusted areas.
The action plan aims to reduce national VOC emissions by more than 10% by 2025, addressing the issue of VOC emissions which currently stand in tens of millions of tonnes.
Furthermore, the plan emphasizes the green and low-carbon transition in the energy and transportation sectors.
- In the energy sector, it outlines strategies to enhance natural gas production and supply, reduce coal consumption outside the power sector, and implement strict controls on total coal consumption. However, coal used as a raw material is exempt from this total consumption calculation.
- In the transportation sector, the plan mandates that at least 80% of new or upgraded public domain vehicles must be new energy vehicles. Additionally, the use of new energy medium and heavy-duty trucks will be encouraged in sectors such as thermal power, steel, and coal, alongside stricter regulations on oil product quality and safety.
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Edited by Navy Liu: liuchuanjun@mysteel.com