Multiple members of China's top political advisory body the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) have suggested that efforts should be enhanced in fighting against air and water pollution as well as for ecological restoration, which resonates with one of the highlights of this year's government work report delivered during the ongoing Two Sessions.

Liu Bingjiang from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said although Beijing's success in eliminating air pollution in 2021 offers a good lesson, more work is needed in terms of regional cooperation.

Beijing has made a breakthrough achievement in battling against persistent air pollution under all indicators, and the average concentration of PM2.5 and ozone dropped significantly to the level-II national standard in 2021, according to Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau. This is the first time Beijing has controlled all the pollutants at the national standard.

"It is an encouraging achievement at this stage, but it is yet to be a qualitative change," said Liu. "Once unfavorable weather occurs, air pollution still inevitably reappears in some northern cities. That said, strengthened efforts are necessary to tackle the problem in a long term."

Ma Quanlin, deputy director of Gansu Desert Control Research Institute, has been working in sand control for dozens of years. He proposed that the desertification prevention should be incorporated in the strategic plan of ecological protection along the Yellow River. And the compensation mechanism should be improved, so as to achieve the common development in economy and ecology.

Ma believes it is also a win-win strategy to further deepen international cooperation with Mongolia by sharing the information in sandstorm monitoring and warning system.

Jin Xian from China-Republic of Korea Friendship Association has put his focus on environmental protection in rural area. He proposed to build a sound drainage system through which discharge from households can be well channeled.

As for the persistent problem caused by burning the crops residual, he thinks the market-driven utilization could be served as a solution.

"There are many matured technologies, but it is difficult to promote," said Jin, adding: "That is because the corn stalks are cheap, yet the transportation fees are high. So farmers would rather burn them up than selling for profit. Therefore, increasing the subsidies to farmers could be an encouraging policy that drives them to deal with agricultural waste in a environment-friendly way."

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