Effect of current emission abatement strategies on air quality improvement in China: A case study of Baotou, a typical industrial city in Inner Mongolia

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Abstract

The national Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan required significant decreases in PM2.5 levels over China. To explore more effective emission abatement strategies in industrial cities, a case study was conducted in Baotou to evaluate the current national control measures. The total emissions of SO2, NOX, PM2.5 and NMVOC (non-methane volatile organic compounds) in Baotou were 211.2 Gg, 156.1 Gg, 28.8 Gg, and 48.5 Gg, respectively in 2013, and they would experience a reduction of 30.4%, 26.6%, 15.1%, and 8.7%, respectively in 2017 and 39.0%, 32.0%, 24.4%, and 12.9%, respectively in 2020. The SO2, NOX and PM2.5 emissions from the industrial sector would experience a greater decrease, with reductions of 37%, 32.7 and 24.3%, respectively. From 2013 to 2020, the concentrations of SO2, NO2, and PM2.5 are expected to decline by approximately 30%, 10% and 14.5%, respectively. The reduction rate of SNA (sulfate, nitrate and ammonium) concentrations was significantly higher than that of PM2.5 in 2017, implying that the current key strategy toward controlling air pollutants from the industrial sector is more powerful for SNA. Although air pollution control measures implemented in the industrial sector could greatly reduce total emissions, constraining the emissions from lower sources such as residential coal combustion would be more effective in decreasing the concentration of PM2.5 from 2017 to 2020. These results suggest that even for a typical industrial city, the reduction of PM2.5 concentrations not only requires decreases in emissions from the industrial sector, but also from the low emission sources. The seasonal variation in sulfate concentration also showed that emission from coal-burning is the key factor to control during the heating season.

Introduction

The frequent occurrences of severe haze-fog pollution events in China have attracted significant attention from researchers and policy makers worldwide (Huang et al., 2014, Zhang et al., 2012). According to the statistics from the Environmental Aspect Bulletin (MEP, 2014) published by the Ministry of Environmental Protection of the Peoples' Republic of China (MEP) in 2013, only four cities met the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS, GB3095-2012) among the 74 major cities with available monitoring data (MEP, 2012). This severe pollution affects visibility, human health and the global climate (Wang et al., 2014, Wang et al., 2014, Wang et al., 2014, Yang et al., 2013, Bond et al., 2013). In response to the deteriorating air quality, the MEP released a series of air pollution control policies, such as the 12th Five-Year Plan (The State Council of the People's Republic of China, 2011), National Total Emission Control Strategies (MEP, 2011) and Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan (APPCAP) (MEP, 2013b). The target of the newest policy was to decrease PM2.5 concentrations in Beijing to 60 μg/m3 by 2017, based on data obtained from 2013. Furthermore, the particulate matter levels were proposed to decrease by 25% in Tianjin and Hebei (representing BTH), 20% in Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang (representing YRD), 15% in Guangdong (representing PRD) and Chongqing; and at least 10% in Inner Mongolia. The proposed control measures involve boiler retrofits, upgrading gasoline, and controlling energy consumption.

To understand the causes of pollution and to significantly improve the air quality through emission abatement options, researchers have explored the primary sources of particulate matter (PM) (Ji et al., 2016, Hua et al., 2015) in the key air quality control areas (viz. BTH, YRD, and PRD) (Gao et al., 2011). The results showed that the occurrence of heavy pollution was related to the rapid increase in the number of vehicles in most megacities (e.g., Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen) and the amount of coal burned for heating in northern cities (e.g., Beijing, Tianjin, and Shijiazhuang) (Zhao et al., 2013a, Zhao et al., 2013b, Zhao et al., 2013c, Zhao et al., 2015, Zhao et al., 2015, Wang et al., 2014, Wang et al., 2014, Wang et al., 2014). However, for certain of the typical industrial cities in China, such as Tangshan (Hebei province), Anshan (Liaoning province) and Baotou (Inner Mongolia province), little is understood regarding the causes of air pollution and what control measures would be most effective.

Baotou is known as the “capital of rare earths”. Secondary industries contributed more than 50% of the economic output, and the steel and aluminum electrolysis industry accounted for 90% of the total industrial output (Environment Protection Bureau of Inner Mongolia, 2013). Meanwhile, the emissions from the industrial sector were significantly higher than other cities. According to the Environment Statistical Yearbook (MEP, 2013a), Inner Mongolia was among the three top emitters for all primary air pollutants for all provinces in 2013, and Baotou contributed more than 20% of the industrial emissions in Inner Mongolia (Environment Protection Bureau of Inner Mongolia, 2013). Moreover, the annual PM2.5 level was 53.4 μg m 3, which is 1.5 times the NAAQS and surpassed the median level of the cities in the air quality ranking of 2014. Thus, understanding more effective control measures for air pollution in this typical industrial city is crucial.

In this study, Baotou is used as a case study to explore more effective pollution mitigation strategies in typical industrial cities. An emission factor method was employed to estimate the emissions of primary air pollutants for the year 2013 and to project their emissions in 2017 and 2020 in Baotou. The Community Multi-scale Air Quality system (CMAQ, v5.0.1) was chosen to evaluate improvements in air quality. The rationality of China's mitigation options was also analyzed. These results could support China's policy-making on air pollution control in industrial cities. As one of the megacities of China suffering from serious air pollution, Beijing has made great achievements in air quality improvement, and its experience in controlling air pollution can serve as a reference for other countries, especially developing countries facing similar issues. This study for an industrial city could also be beneficial for those countries seeking to improve their air pollution control strategy in the future.

Section snippets

Emission inventory

The emission inventory of SO2, NOX, PM2.5, and NMVOCs (non-methane volatile organic compounds) for Baotou was developed for the year 2013 and two future years, 2017 and 2020. The “emission factor method” was employed to calculate air pollutant emissions as described in Wang et al., 2010, Wang et al., 2011a, Wang et al., 2011b, Fu et al., 2013, Qiu et al., 2016b. In Baotou, mitigation options reference the national policies aimed at controlling air pollution. The key measures focus on large

Projected reduction in air pollution emissions from 2013 to 2020

The total SO2 emissions were estimated to be 211.2 Gg, 147.1 Gg and 129.8 Gg in 2013, 2017 and 2020, respectively; therefore, total SO2 emissions are projected to experience a significant decrease of 30.4% in 2017 and 39.0% in 2020 (Fig. 3). The industrial sector was the largest contributor to SO2 emissions (63.5%), declining by 30% in 2017 and 37% in 2020, owing to the widespread installation of desulfurization equipment. Power plants, as the second biggest contributor of SO2 emissions, also were

Current changes in national air pollution control policies

For an industrial city, such as Baotou, controlling the air pollution from the industrial sector is highly important because it constitutes a major portion of the total emissions. This study evaluated the effectiveness of emission abatement strategies and demonstrated the differences though comparisons with previous studies. For example, previous estimates by S.X. Wang et al. (2014), Zhao et al. (2013b) and Lu et al. (2010) for the period from 2005 to 2010 found that the SO2, NOX, and PM2.5

Conclusions

Beginning in 2013, the goal of improving national air quality was proposed, and a series of control measures have been implemented nationally in China. Evaluating the national plan, the total emissions of SO2, NOX, PM2.5 and NMVOC in Baotou, a typical industrial city in northwest China, would experience a reduction of 30.4%, 26.6%, 15.1%, and 8.7%, respectively from 2013 to 2017, and 39.0%, 32.0%, 24.4%, and 12.9%, respectively by 2020. The SO2, NOX and PM2.5 emissions from the industrial

Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Special Scientific Research Fund of the Environmental Protection Commonwealth Section (Nos. 201409003, 201509020).

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