Fuzhou and Xiamen among top 10 in air quality

The Ministry of Environmental Protection on Thursday released air quality rankings of 72 major cities across the country in Dec, 2017.

Xiamen and Fuzhou, two cities in Southeast China's Fujian province, took two of the top 10 slots on the list, ranking 4th and 5th respectively.

Haikou topped the rankings, with the other top 10 cities including Lhasa, Zhoushan, Huizhou, Shenzhen, Lishui, Guiyang and Zhuhai.

Fujian has long been renowned for good quality air. Fujian Daily reported Tuesday that the province’s air quality met national standards on 351 days of 2017.

The average PM2.5 level was 27 micrograms per cubic meter, 42 percent lower than the average across China, Fujian Daily reported, citing statistics from local environmental authorities.

PM2.5 readings are a measure of the density of hazardous particulate in the air. The World Health Organization recommends an annual PM2.5 level of 10 micrograms per cubic meter.

A bird eye's view of the Cangshan district of Fuzhou, Fujian province [Photo/Xinhua]

A bird eye's view of the Gulangyu, a renowned tourist attraction in Xiamen, Fujian province [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]