Smoggy Beijing to cut coal use 30 percent this year: mayor

Chinese capital Beijing will intensify its battle against choking air pollution this year and aims to cut coal use by 30 percent, state news agency Xinhua cited mayor Cai Qi as saying.
Despite repeated pledges to get tough, large parts of northern and central China have been engulfed in thick smog again this winter, often for days at a time, disrupting flights, port operations and schools.
Cai said the government will take even more steps this year, including cutting coal use by helping residents of 700 villages to use clean energy, Xinhua said.