China Reports Year-on-Year Improvement in Air and Water Quality for H1

China recorded measurable improvements in national ecological and environmental quality during the first half of the year, according to data from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment reported by state broadcaster CCTV News. Across 339 prefecture-level and above cities, average PM2.5 concentrations dropped 6.6% year-on-year to 29.9 micrograms per cubic meter, while the proportion of good air quality days reached 82.8%. Surface water quality also improved, with 87.4% of monitored sections meeting Class I to III standards and severe pollution levels falling further.

The official indicators demonstrate progress in China's ongoing anti-pollution campaigns and environmental governance initiatives. Reductions in PM2.5 concentration and surface water contaminants support public health and ecological protection while providing metric-driven evidence of regulatory compliance across regional industrial centers and primary river basins.

China recorded a general improvement in national ecological and environmental quality during the first half of the year, driven by systematic emission reduction programs and tightened environmental governance standards, according to official data from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment reported by state broadcaster CCTV News. In air quality metrics covering 339 prefecture-level and above cities, the national average concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) dropped to 29.9 micrograms per cubic meter, representing a 6.6% year-on-year decrease. Over the same six-month period, the average proportion of days with good air quality reached 82.8%, marking an increase of 4.5 percentage points compared to the corresponding period last year. According to regulatory details released by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, officials focused specifically on sustaining the downward trajectory of PM2.5 pollution levels. To support this objective, environmental regulators leveraged updated ambient air quality standards to guide local actions, while organizing a series of key emission reduction engineering projects and executing specialized governance campaigns across targeted regions. Parallel progress was recorded in surface water management under ongoing national river and lake protection initiatives. The proportion of monitored surface water sections meeting Class I through Class III standards—which denote excellent or good water quality—rose by 3.0 percentage points year-on-year to reach 87.4%. At the same time, the proportion of sections rated worse than Class V, representing severely degraded water bodies, dropped by 1.2 percentage points to 0.9%. Overall water quality improvements were documented across the country's primary hydrological systems, including seven major river basins—such as the Yangtze, Yellow, and Pearl rivers—as well as 145 monitored key lakes and reservoirs. Regulators cited ongoing efforts to strengthen surrounding water body protection, eliminate local pollution hazards, and reinforce safeguards surrounding public drinking water supplies as main contributors to the reported results. While the first-half statistics point toward measurable progress in nationwide pollution prevention efforts, maintaining these performance gains through the remainder of the year will depend on seasonal atmospheric conditions, industrial output levels, and the consistent enforcement of regional environmental targets during the upcoming autumn and winter months.