A New Year means resolutions and reflections, the feature article will look at different subjects from the perspective of Environment, Education, Tourism, Entertainment and Business as it relates to Tianjin, reflecting the past, reviewing the present and looking at the future. We start with looking at the environment.

Progress in China's war on air pollution

China is currently 'at war' with pollution. No longer does the government label the yellow haze 'fog'. Today, a population armed with some 330 million smartphones, as of 2013 according to iiMedia, can check the air quality index (AQI) at any time. For many people, the AQI is the first thing they check every morning.

Air pollution is China's fourth biggest health threat, former health minister Chen Zhu states in a December 2013 issue of Lancet magazine. Citing studies from the World Bank, World Health Organization (WHO) and Chinese Academy for Environmental Planning, Chen states air pollution is causes the premature death of 350,000 to 500,000 Chinese people per year.

Of particular concern in China is the high concentration of fine particles that are especially damaging to the lungs. Less than 2.5 microns in diameter, and known as PM2.5, these particles are comprised of toxic organic compounds, heavy metals and other materials. PM2.5 are released in vehicle emissions, metal processing wastes and burning of plant matter, remain airborne for weeks and travel up to 500 km. The World Health Organization caps the safe level of PM2.5 at 25 µg/m3.

At the time of writing, Tianjin's air quality rating is 'unhealthy' at 227 micrograms per cubic metre. Outside, snippets of blue sky and sun are visible. It’s not terrible for a windless winter day. It's downright clean when contrasted to the air quality of January 2013, a month so bad it drew world ire and eventually leading Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to declare war on air pollution in March 2014.

It was a dark and smoggy day on January 13, 2013. Sixteen Chinese cities, one sixth of China's land mass, lay shrouded in hazardous yellow smog. Dubbed an "airpocalpse" by the world's media, Beijing's air quality rating hit a high of 755, over 30 times the WHO's air safety limit.

The incident closed cities, shut down schools and led to the cancelation of 800 flights. It also prompted mass action. On September 12, 2013, the government released a five year strategy to combat air pollution, called the Action Plan for Air Pollution Prevention and Control (Action Plan). The plan outlines strategies to improve air quality across China and reduce days with heavy air pollution of more than AQI 200 in three key areas; Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the Yangtze River Delta (Shanghai area) and the Pearl River Delta (Guangzhou area).

By 2017, the target for Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei is reduction of PM 10 (particles between 2.5 and 10 microns in diameter) by 10% and for PM2.5 by 25% of the average 2012 level. However, just what the 2012 PM2.5 average was for 2012 isn't clear, as detailed measurements were not made pre 2013.

The plan aims to tackle main sources of emissions: industry, household heating and vehicle emissions.

So, how is the war going? For the first six months of 2014, China's average level of PM2.5 fell by 9 percent, to be 65 µg/m3. John Wang Shaoning, the Human Resources Manager at Butler (Tianjin) Inc., an Australian-owned micro building solutions company, has noted reductions in pollution in and around Tianjin as the government takes action, banning burning leaves for heat in winter, changing household heating and cooking to gas systems and closing down and relocating heavy polluters in the city, such as steel and paper-making manufacturers. He feels optimistic about the future as "the determination of the government can reach objectives".

Shuang Wang is Associate Professor, Vice Dean at Tianjin Coastal Polytechnic and an expert in green and intelligent logistics. She is working with other industry experts to establish an index to help companies measure and manage carbon emissions, from manufacturer to whole seller, with the aim of reducing emissions. Other countries have indexes but they don't tackle "China's different social, logistical and manufacturing problems," she says. "We need research for the Chinese domestic market. In China, we don't know the standard yet. We need to know it to measure and improve."

The new Environmental Protection Law, effective January 1, 2015, was amended for the first time in 25 years since the law was created in 1989, the revised law includes the central and local governments, industries and businesses, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and citizens with greater enforcement, stricter fines, financial rewards for good environmental practices and include transparency of environmental information for the public. In situations where public health and safety are at risk, the public will be notified and emergency responses triggered to immediately counteract episodes of severe pollution such as in January 2013.

It is the government's call for citizen participation that is very interesting to Klaus Aaen, who has lived in China since the mid-1990s and was a senior executive at Vestas Wind Technology and Suzlon Wind Energy and was the Managing Director and Board Director at GE Renewable Energy in China. "Over the past couple of years, in 2012 and 2013, (the country) has really tried to become more aware of the pollution," he says. "Under the new environmental law the government will start to encourage public participation. People will be able to challenge companies if they're not complying, and take companies to court if there's a suspicion they're not in compliance with environmental law.”

So what's next ahead for China and Tianjin? A shift away from coal towards cleaner energy sources, such as natural gas; upgrades and closures of old, heavy industry facilities; and replacement of inefficient vehicles. Top that off with an informed and empowered public participating in environmental action. Hopefully it all equals better air quality, more blue skies and sunshine for Tianjin.