A Review of Air Pollution and Control in Hebei Province, China

Hebei is one of the most air polluted provinces in China. According to the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) for the severe fog-haze month of Jan. 2013, seven of the top ten most polluted cities in China are located in Hebei Province. In this study, the air pollution history and status of the Hebei Province are reviewed and discussed, using the governmental published Air Pollution Index (API), the academic observations by various scientific research groups and the long-term statistics of visibility and haze frequencies. It is found that within the Hebei Province, the air pollution in the southern cities is much more severe than the northern cities. Particulate matter (PM) is undoubtedly the major air pollutant, sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) pollutions are also unnegligible. Ozone (O3) pollution in larger cities, such as Shijiazhuang, is significant. Air pollution control history from 1998 is discussed as well. Although Hebei Province has made a great effort on air quality, the pollutant emissions, such as SO2 and fly ash, showed a notable increase in 2001 to 2006. However, after 2006 the emissions started to decrease due to the strict implementation of the national 11th Five Year Plan (FYP). In addition, regional jointly air pollution control and prevention strategies are expected in the future to substantially change the severe air pollution status in Hebei Province.