China's environmental authorities on Thursday warned northern regions to be ready to take emergency action as the country prepares for another onslaught of heavy smog.
Heavy smog was expected in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, as well as the neighboring provinces of Shandong and Henan, the Ministry of Environmental Protection said in an online statement.
The ministry said "unfavorable weather conditions" in the regions were expected to last until January 5, and it had asked local governments to take appropriate actions to reduce emissions in a timely fashion.
It said it will dispatch 10 inspection teams to make sure emergency measures are implemented and to crack down on firms engaging in "illegal behavior".
Large parts of the country's northern regions were hit by hazardous smog in mid-December, which led authorities to order hundreds of factories to close.
As Beijing enacted "red alert" emergency measures on December 16 to cope with air pollution, images and stories of woe on China’s social media documented the smog that kept schoolchildren and factory workers at home and many vehicles off the roads.
Chinese media offered images and videos showing a stark contrast between the blue sky and the smog fast approaching central Beijing. These photos were taken from what will be the city’s tallest building, which is currently under construction.
People flocked to the popular Summer Palace to take pictures of the blue sky, after the smog cleared and the alert was cancelled on December 22.
On the following day, the ministry admonished more than 20 firms for failing to comply with emergency rules aimed at cutting emissions.
Hebei, regarded as China's most polluted province, said it would learn lessons from the most recent bout of smog and draw up more "focused measures". The province's environment bureau said on Monday it would make adjustments to its emergency system to improve its performance.
China New Year’s holiday will start from December 31. Thousands of people are expected to watch the flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square on January 1, a date which will see people usher in the New Year with choking smog.
