North China to slash coal consumption for better air quality

 China's top economic planning body said Wednesday that cities of Beijing and Tianjin as well as Hebei Province in north China must slash coal consumption to reduce air pollution.
Total coal consumption in 2017 will be reduced by 63 million tonnes from the level in 2012 in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said in a statement.
Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province will respectively see coal consumption reduced by 13 million tonnes, 10 million tonnes, and 40 million tonnes in 2017 from the 2012 level.
The reduction will involve elimination of outdated production capacity and use of cleaner energy such as hydro, nuclear, wind and solar.