Fighting Air Pollution: Taiyuan spends billions of yuan replacing coal with gas

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Winter is approaching and the heating season has begun in northern China. Coal burners are traditionally fired up and air pollution soars. But this year, many cities are making a big difference in air quality by replacing coal with gas. CGTN's Hu Chao reports on the change in Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi province.

A farewell to coal burning. All the coal burners have been torn down in this community on the outskirts of Taiyuan. It's a big change and officials are calling on residents to learn to use the new gas boilers.

RONG QIAOXIAN, RESIDENT XUEDIAN COMMUNITY, TAIYUAN "When we were burning coal, we had a lot of cinders and black smoke. It was bad for our health. We're happy about the change."

CHEN JUNDE, DIRECTOR XUEDIAN COMMUNITY, TAIYUAN "The gas boiler is much more convenient and safe. It's also stable and provides long lasting heat."

Shanxi has huge coal reserves and mining has played a major role in its economy. Residents have kept themselves warm in the winter by burning coal for centuries. And many cities in Shanxi have been among the most polluted places in China.

HU CHAO TAIYUAN, SHANXI PROVINCE In recent years, Taiyuan has been building communal heating systems fueled by gas in urban districts, but many rural households continued to use coal. That changed in October, when Taiyuan launched a complete ban on coal use to improve air quality.

The local government spent six billion yuan replacing coal burners with gas appliances in over 130,000 rural households.

ZHANG JIANHONG, DEPUTY PARTY SECRETARY XIWENZHUANG TOWN, TAIYUAN "Each household gets a subsidy of 10,000 yuan for the installation of a gas boiler. They only need to pay 1,900 yuan."

The local environment protection bureau says so far 471 coal burners have been removed. The city expects to cut 240,000 tons of coal burning a year, dramatically cutting carbon dioxide emissions. Hu Chao, CGTN, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province.