BEIJING - A total of 24.04 million tons of oxynitride were emitted in China last year, up 5.73 percent year on year, according to an environmental report for 2011 issued Tuesday.

The report, jointly issued by the Ministry of Environmental Protection(MEP), the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Land and Resources, said 22.2 million tons of sulfur dioxide were emitted last year as well.

The report said 65.2 billion tons of liquid waste were discharged in China, including 2.6 million tons of ammonia.

Vice Minister of Environmental Protection Wu Xiaoqing said at a press conference that the amount of oxynitride emissions in 2011 indicates that the government failed to meet its goal of reducing oxynitride emissions by 1.5 percent.

China has made plans to curb its oxynitride emissions and spend more money to reduce emissions in order to meet the emission reduction target set forth in the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15), Wu added.

The report painted a dark picture for rural areas, indicating that pollution discharges in those regions have increased as a result of the acceleration of agricultural industrialization and the integration of urban and rural areas.

In 2011, the MEP began monitoring pollutants in 364 rural villages on a trial basis, finding that 81.9 percent of the villages met national air quality standards, the report said.

However, 21.5 percent of soil samples from these villages failed to meet national soil quality standards, the report said, adding that soil around landfills, farms and companies tended to be contaminated.

The government spent 8 billion yuan ($1.26 billion) as of 2011 to protect the environment in rural areas, Wu said.

Wu said a database has been established to handle contaminated soil samples collected between 2006 and 2010.

"The MEP will pass the survey results on to the State Council and publish the results at the proper time," Wu said.