Asian nations in joint air quality agreement

China, South Korea and Japan have agreed to work jointly to tackle air pollution, following trilateral talks between ministers last week (25 August).

Environment ministers from China, South Korea, and Japan met in Suwon, on the outskirts of Seoul in South Korea, and issued a joint statement on Friday promising to step up efforts to tackle air pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss.

Suwon, South Korea

China’s minister for environmental protection, Li Ganjie, said following the meeting that the three countries shared experiences in tackling air pollution and preventing sand storms.

They also pledged to conduct more joint research into fine particulate matter pollution controls – one of the priority areas for action among the three, the minister said.

The agreement comes shortly after China’s Environment Ministry announced plans to tackle particulate matter and ozone air pollution in a number of cities across the country. This was announced after it was revealed that Chinese cities had reported fewer days with ‘good air’ in July compared to the same period in 2016.