China to release better air quality data

Starting January first, the residents of some Chinese cities will be better informed about air quality. The Ministry of Environmental Protection says a network of 496 monitoring stations will start releasing reports air quality in 74 cities.

The real-time reports will cover six types of pollutants, including PM 2.5. This refers to fine particles with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less. The cities will use the air quality index, or A-Q-I to replace the current standard air pollution index, or A-P-I. The main differences between the indices are that AQI covers a wider range and is stricter.