BEIJING, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- China is formulating a new action plan for sustained air quality improvement, placing emphasis on higher quality standards and more targeted region-specific policies, an official said Thursday.

File photo: IC

The plan will tighten the concentration limit for PM2.5, with stricter limits on other pollutants including PM10, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, Xu Bijiu, vice minister of ecology and environment, said at a press briefing held by the State Council Information Office.

The plan seeks to tailor pollution control to local conditions. Key areas, including the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and its surrounding areas, as well as the Yangtze River Delta region and the Fenwei Plain, will maintain strict controls.

City clusters along the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the Chengdu-Chongqing region and some areas in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, will be designated as areas for intensified action, with comprehensive pollution-control measures benchmarked against those in the key regions.

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as well as Fujian and Hainan provinces will serve as pioneer regions, aiming for world-class standards and exploring new approaches to achieving further air-quality improvements.

The plan will also focus on optimizing industrial, energy and transportation structures, strengthening pollution control in key sectors, and updating emission standards and supporting policies, according to Xu.

China has made significant progress in improving air quality in recent years. The annual average PM2.5 concentration, a key indicator of air quality, fell to 28 micrograms per cubic meter in 2025, down 59 percent from 2013, while the proportion of days with heavy air pollution dropped to 0.9 percent, both reaching their best levels on record.

Despite the progress, challenges remain as improvement in air pollution control is still "insufficient, unstable and uneven," Xu noted.

The new plan came as China is intensifying its green efforts. A recently released plan to build a Beautiful China during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) has called for a comprehensive improvement in the quality of the ecological environment by 2030.