Pollution daunting despite some progress, report says

Improvement seen in air and water, but many cities still failed to meet standards

China made noticeable environmental improvements last year, with reductions in many airborne pollutants and in cleaning up severely polluted water, according to the annual bulletin about the national environmental situation released on Thursday.

Still, the report found that 265 of the 338 monitored cities failed to meet national air quality standards, with pollution control initiatives complicated by thorny issues related to ozone at ground level, experts said.