Zhanjiang yields good results in bolstering blue sky defense

On July 29, the display screen of the Zhanjiang municipal ecological environment bureau showed that the PM2.5 particulate concentration in Zhanjiang dropped well into single figures.

From January to June 2019, the number of days recorded with excellent or good air quality in Zhanjiang was 177, a rate of 97.8 percent. It has an air quality index (AQI) of 2.54, which is the best over the same period in recent years. The amount of the six major pollutants meet the overall standards, with a mean PM2.5 concentration of only 22 micrograms per cubic meter, a year-on-year decrease of 21.4 percent. Since May, the number of days with a mean PM2.5 concentration below 10 mcg per cu m has gradually increased. There were six days in May, seven days in June, and nine days in July.

In recent years, the municipal Party committee and the municipal government of Zhanjiang have issued several implementation action plans on the “blue sky defense war.” With its rapid economic development and increasingly tight environmental capacity, the city has achieved a good pattern of coexistence between bolstering its economy and environmental protection.

Zhanjiang has done much work to improve its air quality. From January 1, 2019, Zhanjiang promoted the steel, petrochemical, and cement industries to gradually implement atmospheric pollutant discharge limits, as well as completed the ultra-low emission transformation tasks of eight coal-fired units and one coal-fired boiler in the city.

On January 7, 2019, the high-polluting fuel-free zone in Zhanjiang was re-delineated, and the area of the no-burn zone was expanded to 223 square kilometers. In addition, the rectification and elimination of 245 biomass boilers was completed, as well as a total of 251 unqualified enterprises have been renovated.

Zhanjiang vigorously promotes the installation of spray pipes on construction site walls and strictly requires 100 percent coverage of bare soil or undeveloped construction land. Since 2019, the city has carried out 879 dust-raising inspections, 643 inspection projects, 209 construction prevention and control accounts, ordered rectification on 243 case rectifications, as well as imposed five economic penalties and a fine of 27,000 yuan ($3,922.65).

In addition, the city also carried out special campaigns on pollution control of diesel trucks.

In the future, the city will continue to increase industrial and dust pollution prevention and control efforts, as well as start a vehicle exhaust gas remote sensing monitoring system construction project to monitor vehicle sewage discharge status in real time.