Hebei to cut industrial production to ensure air quality during APEC

SHIJIAZHUANG - More than 2,000 factories will halt or reduce production in north China's Hebei Province, a contributor of pollution in Beijing, to ensure air quality during the APEC meeting next month.

The province will impose production suspension or reduction measures on an estimated 2,386 enterprises as well as the suspension of work at 2,445 construction sites, said the Hebei Provincial Environmental Protection Department.

These measures will cut pollutants by 30 percent year-on-year.

Based on the impact of pollutants to Beijing's air, the province marked areas within 100 km from Beijing as the top control region and places within 100 to 200 km from the capital as the secondary control region, said Lyv Wen, an air pollution control official of the department.

The two key control regions will implement the measures throughout the APEC meeting. Other areas will take similar moves when air quality index in Beijing is above 200, which means heavy or serious pollution.

By 12 p.m. of Oct. 31, the measures will take effect for plants in two marked key regions.

Each city in Hebei has a production cut plan and the province has set up 46 inspection teams.

Around-the-clock supervision will be carried out to key factories and a law enforcement campaign will be carried out to tackle pollution-related crimes, according to the official.

With excessive capacities of glass, steel and cement, Hebei has the most of heavy polluted cities in the country.