Officials from the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) and six provincial-level regions in north China on Wednesday agreed to reduce coal consumption to control smog.

At an air pollution control conference held in Beijing, participants from Beijing, Tianjin, provinces of Hebei, Shanxi and Shandong and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region agreed to cap coal consumption, eliminating coal-fired heating equipment and promoting central heating.

Other controls will be imposed on vehicles, oil quality, and industrial pollution.

MEP Minister Zhou Shengxian said the central government would strengthen monitoring, forecasting, supervision and legislation, while making better use of technology to reduce pollution.

The smoggiest regions, including Beijing, have suffered severe pollution in recent months. As winter approaches, pollution from coal fires is likely to worsen.

On September 18, the MEP and the governments of the six regions signed an agreement on prevention and control of pollution in Beijing and surrounding areas.

The Ministry of Finance announced on Oct. 14 a 5 billion yuan (814 million U.S. dollars) reward for air pollution reduction. Endit

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