Last coal mine to close, as greener future opens up
Beijing’s last coal mine will shut before the end of this year, ending the city’s reliance on the fossil fuel which stretches back more than 1,000 years.
The closure reflects the government’s ongoing efforts to improve the environment for the public.
Located in Mentougou district in Beijing’s southwest, the Datai coal mine belongs to the State-owned Jingmei Group, which started operations in 1948.
Historically, Mentougou has been a crucial coal supplier to Beijing. However, as the city has changed in recent years so too has the district, shifting from being an energy provider to an environmental conservation area.
More than 270 coal mines have been shut down in Mentougou over the past 20 years, according to the district authority.
“The district has invested 3 billion yuan ($428 million) in building urban parks, greenbelts and river landscapes in the past few years,” said Zhang Libing, Party secretary of the district.
“We have planted flowers such as roses and marigolds along the roads and in mountain areas.”
To ease the capital’s air pollution and improve the natural environment, the municipal government has pursued multiple approaches in different sectors.
Beijing has set up a monitoring network for PM2.5 pollutant particles, covering 1,300 monitoring stations located in 300 streets.
Liu Baoxian, head of the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center, said last year the city recorded 195 consecutive days without heavy PM2.5 pollution, more than double the number of 87 recorded in 2013.
Beijing’s energy, industrial and transportation infrastructure have all been upgraded as the air quality improves. City authorities have shut down 2,600 polluting companies over the past five years, while also encouraging the use of electric vehicles.
In March, the United Nations Environment Programme published a report on Beijing’s air pollution campaign, which said the city had provided a valuable example to other international cities on achieving their goals in a short period.
Beijing has also increased the number of greenbelts and urban parks to provide more enjoyable recreational spaces for its citizens. By next year, Beijing’s subcenter in Tongzhou district will have forest covering 33 percent of its area, aiming to create an environment where people see greenery when they open their doors.