Natural environment in Wuxi. [Photo/WeChat account: news-wuxixinwen]

According to the municipal ecological environment bureau of Wuxi, the city reached the best performance in the annual average concentration of PM2.5 and the rate of excellent air quality days in 2024.

Last year, the annual average concentration of PM2.5 in the city was 27 micrograms per cubic meter, a year-on-year decrease of 3.6 percent, and the rate of excellent air quality days reached 83.9 percent, an increase of 1.4 percentage points compared to the previous year.

With the blue skies in Wuxi becoming a regular sight, what is the secret behind this success?

At the construction site of the K11 Select shopping and art center near Zhenze Road in the Wuxi Economic Development District, the dump trucks and concrete mixers have been replaced with green "hearts", with all-electric machinery operating quietly and efficiently. Through such green alternatives, the entire project's construction can reduce diesel consumption by 660,000 liters and cut carbon dioxide emissions by 1,736 metric tons.

How can this positive momentum be maintained?

Last year, the city issued an implementation plan to continuously improve its air quality, setting the overall goal for this year: by 2025, the city's average PM2.5 concentration should decrease by 10 percent compared to 2020, and nitrogen oxides and VOC emissions should decrease by more than 10 percent each compared to 2020.