On December 13, the Ministry of Environmental Protection released the air quality index statistics for 74 important Chinese cities in November. That month, Beijing saw nine days of serious pollution, four days more than the same time last year, the Beijing Times reported.
According to the ministry, the average density of PM2.5 in Beijing in November reached 118 micrograms per cubic meter, a rise of 38.8 percent compared with last year.
The report said the heavy pollution was caused by increased coal burning and bad atmospheric conditions.
