Hohhot, capital of Inner Mongolia autonomous region, had 225 days of excellent or good air quality (Grades I and II) in the first quarter of 2015, an average of 82.4 percent, , according to the local environmental protection bureau.

Statistics show that the average density of major pollutants, including PM2.5, PM10 and sulfur dioxide, dropped in the first quarter compared with the same period last year.

A dragon kite flies high in Hohhot, capital of Inner Mongolia on Aug 29, 2015. [Photo by Lian Zhen/Xinhua]

According to authorities, the air quality index of Hohhot was 5.02, which put the city in first place among 15 provincial cities in Northern China. The remarkable improvement is the result of comprehensive control efforts by the local government, including restrictions on polluting industries, shutting down heavy polluters and high emissions projects, reduction of coal burning and elimination of “yellow label cars”, or heavy-polluting vehicles.

The environmental protection bureau joined hands with local traffic authorities to weed out more than 5,600 such vehicles in the January-September period.

The city also rolled out policies to improve energy efficiency and urged heating providers to use low-sulfur coal and desulfurization technology.