(ECNS) - Beijing will stage a "plants versus PM2.5" campaign this year to help improve air quality, China National Radio reported Friday.
Some plants in the green belts along Beijing's roads will be replaced by specimens with better dust-retention capabilities, forestry authorities said on Thursday.
According to the report, 18 plants that are more efficient at retaining PM2.5 particles have been selected, including Chinese scholar tree, ginkgo, purple leaf sand cherry and lilac. Tongzhou district will take the lead in piloting the program.
The Beijing Institute of Landscape Architecture has found that plants can help reduce PM2.5 density within the green belts by 10 to 20 percent annually.
However, the capacity for leaves to hold particles is not limitless. Rainfall higher than 15mm, at an intensity of 10mm/h, will wash away dust that has accumulated on the leaves.
