Chief operator Liu Yong stands in front of the Huaneng Beijing Thermal Power Plant No.4 unit on Saturday. Photo: CFP

 In the latest move to curb air pollution, Beijing has shut down its last large coal-fired power plant, bringing the capital one step closer to achieving the goal of pollution reduction urged by locals.

The Huaneng Beijing Thermal Power Plant, which was built in 1999, suspended operation on Saturday. The suspension means the reduction of about 1.76 million tonnes of coal, 91 tonnes of sulfur dioxide and 285 tonnes of nitrogen oxide emissions a year.

The shutdown also marks the end of Beijing's four large coal-fired power plants. Their closure meets 70 percent of the city's goal to cut coal consumption by 13 million tonnes by the end of 2017.

As 25 percent of Beijing's PM 2.5 comes from coal burning, Beijing will see obvious improvement of air quality after the shutdown, Wang Gengchen, a research fellow at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

However, the capital still has a long way to go to have clean air, which requires collaboration from different government sectors in different regions, Wang noted.

Replace coal



Beijing has long pledged to address air pollution by reducing the use of coal, vowing to reach an energy mix where coal makes up less than 10 percent in 2017, according to the capital's Five-Year Clean Air Action Plan (2013-17).

The shutdown of the four large power plants was a main task listed in the plan, and natural gas will take coal's place to meet power and heating demands.

Currently, there are 27 power plants in Beijing, all fueled by clean energy with a total installed capacity of 11.3 million kilowatts, and the city has no plans to build any new large-scale ones in the future, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

However, experts pointed out that the shutdown and replacement process have faced many obstacles, such as an economic loss and staff rearrangement for the companies.

For instance, Huaneng power plant was originally scheduled to suspend operation in 2016, according to the action plan, but the shutdown did not occur until March.

Financial support to replace and upgrade facilities is also a big concern, especially for those who are currently suffering from economic losses, said Wang.

Separately, coal burned by local residents for cooking and heating, especially in suburban areas, also remains a tricky problem.

Compared with coal used by companies, the coal burned by residents is poor quality and the emissions directly go into the air without any denitrification or desulfurization process, said Wang.

The way ahead

According to the five-year plan, Beijing aims to control the annual average density of PM 2.5 to around 60 micrograms per cubic meter in 2017, while the number was 73 micrograms per cubic meter in 2016, down 9.9 percent from 2015.

To achieve this goal, Beijing needs a comprehensive solution that unifies efforts from city planning, energy and transportation sectors, Niu Fengrui, a research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

According to Wang, 33 percent of Beijing's PM 2.5 comes from vehicle emission and 20 percent from dust.

Citing vehicle emission as an example, Niu noted Beijing needs to find a solution that can effectively reduce the emission of vehicle exhaust while the amount of cars in the city keeps increasing.

Meanwhile, as air pollution has no geographic boundaries, Beijing also needs collaboration from neighboring regions, especially the smog-shrouded Hebei Province, to fully secure clear air, Niu noted.

In January, Hebei vowed to reduce its dependence on coal-fired power plants, with measures including the elimination of outdated facilities and upgrading of power plants, Xinhua reported.

Meanwhile, the capital will spend 18.2 billion yuan ($2.6 billion) to fight air pollution in 2017, together with efforts to strictly implement emission standards and enhance environmental law enforcement, Beijing Mayor Cai Qi said in January while delivering the city government work report.

The city will replace coal with clean energy for 700 villages, phase out 300,000 high-polluting old vehicles, and close or upgrade 2,570 polluting factories in 2017, said Cai.

All the changes have shown that the Beijing government has implemented pollution reduction plans into action, which is difficult because of tradeoffs of economic and environmental benefits, Li Zuojun, an environment expert at the Development Research Center of the State Council, told the Global Times.

However, as the public is more demanding on visible and effective actions from government, authorities must deliver a satisfying result in improving air quality, he added.