China successfully cuts down air pollution in last 4 years: US study

Beijing: Many cities in China have successfully combated smog by cutting a significant amount of air pollution in the last four years, according to a study by the University of Chicago on Wednesday.

The study titled - "China is winning its war against pollution", conducted by Michael Greenstone, a professor in economics and director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago said that air pollution has decreased in China's most populous cities, according to a data collected from more than 200 air pollution monitors in the country, Xinhua reported.

"Chinese cities on average have cut concentrations of fine particulates PM 2.5, widely considered to be the deadliest form of air pollution, by 32 percent in just four years", the study said.

"By winning this war, China is due to see dramatic improvements in the overall health of its people, including longer lifespans, if these improvements are sustained," Greenstone stated.

According to the study, many prominent Chinese cities, such as capital Beijing has cut down air pollution by 35 percent. Shijiazhuang, the capital city of Hebei Province reduced air pollution by 39 percent, while Baoding, China's most polluted city in 2015, cut down air pollution by 38 percent.

According to Greenstone, if China can sustain these reductions, residents in the polluted cities can see their lifespans extended by 2.4 years on average.

The study also praised the country's remarkable progress to reduce air pollution in such a short period of time by taking "aggressive and extraordinary measures."

Recently, China installed huge machines to suck out the harmful pollutants in the air. It has also shut down or curtailed operations at dozens of steel plants and impounded on old vehicles respectively.

The country has also allocated resources in using renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, geothermal and the use of natural gas.

China, one of the world's most polluted country, see huge periods of smog cover, especially in the winter seasons.

A 2015 study from the non-profit organisation Berkeley Earth estimated that 1.6 million people in China die each year from heart and lung-related problems because of polluted air.