Beijing to charge emitters of PM2.5-forming pollutants

BEIJING - Emitters of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), a source of air pollution, in Beijing will pay fees from October, the city's environment watchdog said on Tuesday.

Manufacturers of furniture, petrochemicals, automobiles and electronics; packagers; and printers will be subject to the charge, according to Wang Chunlin, director of pollution prevention and control with Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau.

Vehicle emissions, the use of solvents, storage and transport of gasoline may generate VOCs, which can form hazardous, breathable particles known as PM2.5 following chemical reactions in the atmosphere.

The polluters will be charged 10 yuan ($1.57) for per kilogram of discharged gas if their VOC emissions do not exceed 50 percent of the city's limit. Those whose emissions are higher than half of the limit but do not exceed the standards will be charged 20 yuan per kg.

Those polluters whose VOCs emissions pass the limits will pay 40 yuan per kg. Those who do not have waste gas treatment facilities or those whose facilities malfunction will be charged the same amount.

The fees are higher than the treatment cost for polluters, so will stimulate polluters to adopt cleaner methods, Wang said.

The capital has become increasingly smog-bound in recent years, partly due to the rise of PM2.5. The central government has ordered the city to cut PM2.5 from 2012 levels by 25 percent by 2017.