On 5 March 2018, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang announced China’s environmental protection goals for 2018 during the first session of the 13th National People’s Congress. Goals include a reduction of SO2 and NOx Emissions by 3%, a 2% decrease in chemical oxygen demand(COD) and in ammonia emissions, and continued reductions in PM 2.5 values.
In the following years, China will reforest approximately 6.67 million hectares of land. Crop rotation and fallow land trials will be scaled up to cover 2 million hectares of farmland. There will be a comprehensive prohibition on imported waste.
In the last five years, China has seen a gradual improvement in its ecosystem. The energy and water consumption per unit of GDP dropped by at least 20%. The total forest area increased by about 10 million hectares, while the area occupied by desert decreased by 2000 hectares.
In terms of air pollution, PM 2.5 concentration dropped by more than 30% in key areas. China has successfully cut coal consumption by 8.1% and increased clean energy consumption by 6.3%. It also has achieved zero growth in the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 20 million old vehicles with high emissions were decommissioned.
