Beijing gets rid of 180,000 old, polluting vehicles from roads from January to April

Beijing removed 180,000 old and pollution automobiles from its roads in the first four months of this year, the Chinese capital’s environmental bureau has stated, as part of its efforts to deal with congestion and cut smog.

An action plan released in 2015 committed Beijing eliminating an overall of 1 million ageing automobiles over the 2013-2017 period. The country’s capital has to take 300,000 off the road this year to fulfill the target.

The Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau stated on Thursday the capital has an overall of 5.7 million vehicles, responsible for 50% of the city’s nitrogen oxide emissions, a significant source of smog.

Traffic is accountable for 31 percent of Beijing’s overall particulate matter, environment minister Chen Jining stated previously this year.

The city has promised extraordinary steps this year to fulfill its 2013-2017 air pollution targets after a spike in smog in the region in January and February.

Average readings of little breathable particles called PM2.5 reached 95 micrograms per cubic metre in country’s capital in the very first 2 months of this year, up 69.6 percent from the same duration of 2016.

The World Health Organization advises concentrations of 10 micrograms.