China reports drops in emissions of major pollutants

BEIJING -- China reported drops in emissions of major pollutants last year, according to a government report issued Tuesday.

Summarizing China's environmental conditions in 2012, the report says emissions of chemical oxygen demand, a measure of organic pollutants in water, totalled 24.237 million tons last year, down 3.05 percent year-on-year.

Emissions of sulfur dioxide, another major pollutant, in 2012 dropped 4.52 percent from the previous year to 21.176 million tons, according to the report launched by the Ministry of Environmental Protection.

Moreover, the report says China reported ammonia nitrogen emissions totalling 2.536 million tons and nitrogen oxide emissions totalling 23.378 million tons, registering year-on-year decreases of 2.62 percent and 2.77 percent, respectively.

Monitoring results indicate that China's overall environmental conditions in 2012 remained roughly stable, but still grave, according to ministry officials.