Urumqi will invest 5 billion yuan (US$731 million) to clean up wintertime pollution this year, Li Zhi, Party secretary of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region's capital, said.

The money will be spent on pollution control and infrastructure construction, Li, who is also a delegate to the ongoing Second Session of the National Committee of the 11th National People's Congress, said.

The 2009 input alone will equal the total sum the city had spent on the 'blue sky mission' -- a project curbing Urumqi's air pollution - in the past few years.

Located in central Xinjiang, the city has long been known for its wintertime pollution, which has worsened in recent years.

Figures from the Environmental Monitoring of China (EMC) website show that for 29 days in January, the city's air quality was categorized as Level 3 or higher, meaning the air was "slightly or heavily polluted".

For 18 days in January, the city topped the list of 86 Chinese cities that EMC monitored with high air pollution levels.

In addition, air pollution on January 7, January 11 and January 24 reached levels unprecedented since EMC started the daily monitoring. On January 7, the pollution index rating exceeded 500 -- the maximum limit the monitoring equipment could measure.

The thick smog plagued residents' lives. By February 17, hundreds of flights from the Urumqi international airport had been delayed by low visibility.

Li gave several reasons for the city's wintertime pollution.

Mountains surround Urumqi on three sides. The city's low altitude and terrain hinder the flow of respirable particle nuclei, a major cause of smog.

In addition, average winter temperatures have increased considerably since the late 1990s, creating a thick inversion layer of air blocking pollutant dispersion.

Also, the city's population has soared in recent years, but the energy systems have not caught up to the rapid urbanization.

Much of the city's heating still comes from coal, which burns dirtily, releasing fumes and dust.

Urumqi planned to address the problem by renovating the city's energy systems and switching heating facilities from coal to gas, Li said.

"With government support, every factory and plant in the city will be outfitted with pollution-filtering equipment, such as facilities that de-sulfate the air," Li said.

In addition, the city is already implementing a massive scheme to expand the city center, stretching it northward and southward, while moving industry to the outskirts.

With the unprecedented monetary input, Urumqi's people will soon enjoy "a nicer city under a beautiful blue sky", Li said.

(China Daily March 13, 2009)