China’s latest clean air provision includes the outright banning of all usage and sales of coal in Beijing by the end of 2020.
The Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau posted plans for the ban on its website, saying the smog-infiltrated city will instead rely on electricity and natural gas, The Associated Press reported.
Xinhua News Agency, the state-run media in China, reported that coal was used by about a quarter of the population in the city.
Chinese authorities already banned new coal-fired power plants from being built around Beijing and two other major cities, AP said.
But energy insiders say the Beijing ban probably won’t help with clean air efforts that much. Coal use in China is projected to spike in the coming years, AP reported.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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