Average quality of air in China 2021, by air pollutants

Over the last decade, China has been trying to tackle worsening air quality from urbanization and industrialization. In 2021, the average concentration of ozone was around 137 micrograms per cubic meter in 339 cities in China.

Environmental degradation

Becoming the global manufacturing hub of goods brought not only rapid economic development to China, but also deteriorating air quality in cities across the country. Among other types of environmental issues, air pollution was the most concerning issue for almost half of Chinese survey respondents. Since 2001, carbon dioxide emissions in China have tripled to over 11 gigatons in 2021, with emissions increasing quickly again after dipping in 2016.

Environmental protection

The Chinese government saw environmental degradation primarily as a public health issue to Chinese citizens and therefore started contributing more and more resources into protecting the environment. In 2021, public expenditure on energy conservation and environmental protection in China had amounted to nearly 554 billion yuan, double the amount of ten years ago. Citizens have also begun to change their habits due to climate change. For example, around half of Chinese have made changes to their commuting and water use habits in order to help fight climate change.