Baoding, in Hebei province, plans to adopt a new standard to curb pollutant emissions of vehicles, the Beijing News reported on Wednesday.

The Baoding government has sent the plan to the provincial government for its approval, said Wang Jinfu, deputy chief of the city’s Environmental Protection Bureau.

China recently adopted a category of emissions standards similar to that in Europe.

The city also plans to upgrade its gas quality standards by 2017.

According to media reports, Shanghai will apply its new emissions standard on April 30. Beijing adopted the standard in May 2013.

Baoding aims to be consistent with Beijing in trying to improve air quality, said Wang, who added that cleaner air is necessary since Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei is in talks of becoming integrated.

He said that the quality of gas is an important factor in the emissions of vehicles, which are a major source of the pollution.

To control air pollution, Baoding also plans to introduce some traffic control measures that have already been adopted in Beijing and Tianjin.

The city said it will eliminate about 25,400 so-called yellow label cars, which are heavy-polluting vehicles, by the end of the year.

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