Heavy air pollution earlier than usual: MEP

The Ministry of Environmental Protection is suggesting the heavy air pollution which tends to linger over northern China during the late fall and winter months is expected to come earlier than usual this year, reports sohu.com.

Smog lingers for several days in Beijing in late February, 2017. [File photo: qq.com]

Forecasters are suggesting warmer temperatures in the Arctic, as well as higher pressure over the Pacific Ocean, is likely going to keep the air mass more stagnant than it normally is during this time of year. While it's likely to keep temperatures somewhat higher than normal, it's also going to push air pollution levels back up to levels seen a few years ago.

The Forbidden City in Beijing, is shrouded in smog in early April, 2017. [File photo: Chinanews.com]

Steps have been underway in China to try to deal with the country's notorious air quality issues.

This has included a shuttering of a number of major polluters in and around the capital region over the past few years.

New vehicle emission standards are also being brought in. Government agencies are now being prompted to purchase hybrid or electric vehicles.

From March to August 2017, average PM2.5 readings have come in at 49 microgrammes per cubic meter across China. This is down 25-percent from the whole of 2016.