The Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau plans to take measures to reduce emissions of PM 2.5 - one of the most prevalent air pollutants in the city, the bureau said Tuesday.

PM 2.5, which stands for particulate matter less than 2.5 microns in diameter, is considered dangerous because the size of the particulates allows them to lodge deeply in the lungs, where they can cause or aggravate respiratory illnesses. It has also been the pollutant that has contributed the most to the rise in the city's air pollution index.

The environmental protection bureau aims to eliminate the sulfur dioxide, oxynitride and dust in the emissions produced at the Shanghai Waigaoqiao Power Plant and four other power plants. It also plans to get rid of sulfur emissions from a machine that processes powdered ore at a Baosteel plant in the city.

It also plans to shut down 350 coal-burning machines in the city, or ask their owners to use a cleaner source of fuel. It aims to remove 60,000 vehicles that produce heavy pollution from the roads. In addition, it plans to curb emissions of volatile organic compounds in 11 industries, including dining and dry cleaning. The bureau also plans to improve the monitoring systems for PM 2.5 and the city's Air Quality Index.

These measures will help deal with the problem because the primary sources of PM 2.5 are automobile exhaust and power plant emissions, said Zhuang Guoshun, director of the Center for Atmospheric Chemistry Study at Fudan University. "The government should further develop public transportation to prevent the number of private cars from increasing because vehicle exhaust accounts for the majority of PM 2.5," Zhuang told the Global Times.

The government should also tighten standards for automobile exhaust, Zhuang added.

The PM 2.5 measures are among the main tasks that the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau plans to complete in 2013. The bureau also aims to advance the structural adjustment of enterprises that release heavy pollution and prevent and control water pollution. It also plans to build more recycling centers to improve its ability to deal with solid waste.