Half of Chinese cities suffer from severe air pollution

More than half of Chinese cities suffer from air pollution and over one third have no centralised sewage treatment facilities, according to a report issued by the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) on Monday.
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The report rated air pollution the major environmental problem for urban areas after assessing last year’s environmental conditions in 509 cities.

According to the report, air quality in only 44.9% of cities was above Grade II, a national standard indicating a clean and healthy air environment.

The report found that only 22.94% of sewage was treated adequately in the cities surveyed and less than 20% of household garbage met with proper handling.

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