Articles | Volume 17, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-1775-2017
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-1775-2017
Research article
 | 
06 Feb 2017
Research article |  | 06 Feb 2017

Cleaning up the air: effectiveness of air quality policy for SO2 and NOx emissions in China

Ronald J. van der A, Bas Mijling, Jieying Ding, Maria Elissavet Koukouli, Fei Liu, Qing Li, Huiqin Mao, and Nicolas Theys

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Cited articles

Boersma, K. F., Eskes, H. J., Dirksen, R. J., van der A, R. J., Veefkind, J. P., Stammes, P., Huijnen, V., Kleipool, Q. L., Sneep, M., Claas, J., Leitão, J., Richter, A., Zhou, Y., and Brunner, D.: An improved tropospheric NO2 column retrieval algorithm for the Ozone Monitoring Instrument, Atmos. Meas. Tech., 4, 1905–1928, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-4-1905-2011, 2011.
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Chen, W. and Xu, R.: Clean coal technology development in China, Energ. Policy, 38, 2123–2130, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2009.06.003, 2010.
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Short summary
The SO2 concentrations and NOx emissions over China derived from satellite observations are compared with the national fossil fuel consumption and air quality regulations. It is shown that not only NO2 concentrations but also NOx emissions in all Chinese provinces decreased in the last 2 years. We conclude that without the air quality regulations the SO2 concentrations would be about 2.5 times higher and the NO2 concentrations would be at least 25 % higher than they are today in China.
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