Wang Gang, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China
(CPC) Central Committee, said Beijing had made great efforts in improving its
natural environment conditions over the past six years.
Wang, also National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference (CPPCC) vice chairman, made the remarks in Beijing during an
inspection of environment conditions.
The inspection will also cover neighbouring Tianjin Municipality and Shanxi
and Hebei Provinces.
"The Green Olympics is one of the most important themes of the Beijing
Games," Wang said, "The city has made great efforts, and succeeded in improving
its environment, especially its air quality, to fulfill the environmental
commitment it made when bidding for the Games."
He stressed the city had also achieved a lot in curbing water pollution,
noise control and waste processing.
"These efforts have laid good foundation for the 'Green Olympics' goal", he
said.
Wang urged government departments to strengthen efforts to ensure that
Beijing would enjoy a clean environment during the Games in August.
In late February, major pollutants in Beijing were reported to be down and
air quality in the city had improved for a ninth consecutive year.
Between 1998 and 2007, the amount of sulphur dioxide in the capital's air was
down 60.8 percent, while carbon monoxide was cut39.4 percent. Nitrogen dioxide
was reduced 10.8 percent and particles were down 17.8 percent, according to
latest statistics.
The number of days that met the "blue sky" standard had increased from 100 to
246 during the period and the figure is expected to rise to 256 this year.