--- description: A new report says air quality across China remains "a major health hazard." title: 366 of China's Cities Don't Have Safe Air, Greenpeace Says image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta5017bfa7151a0af/698879d5196cf40815039f1a/china-pollution.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 366 of China's Cities Don't Have Safe Air, Greenpeace Says by [Ed Flanagan / NBC News](/author/nbc-news/) ## Ed Flanagan / NBC News Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 20, 2016 5:37 PM CUT  People wear protective masks near the Bund during a polluted day in Shanghai, China, on Jan.19, 2016. People wear protective masks near the Bund during a polluted day in Shanghai, China, on Jan.19, 2016.Aly Song—Reuters by [Ed Flanagan / NBC News](/author/nbc-news/) ## Ed Flanagan / NBC News Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 20, 2016 5:37 PM CUT BEIJING — Air quality across China generally improved last year but remains a “major health hazard,” according to Greenpeace. A new report ranking 366 of the country’s cities in terms of air pollution highlighted that there was still plenty of room for improvement. “None of these 366 cities meet the [World Health Organization’s air quality standard](http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs313/en/ "undefined"),” said Dong Liansai, a climate and energy campaigner for Greenpeace. “That is to say 100 percent of Chinese cities studied fail to meet the WHO’s standard.” Annual average levels of PM2.5 — particulate matter of 2.5 micrometers in diameter that can penetrate deep into the lungs — dropped by 10.3 percent last… [Read the rest of the story from our partners at NBC News](http://www.nbcnews.com/news/china/366-china-s-cities-don-t-have-safe-air-greenpeace-n500261?cid=par-time-article%5F20160120 "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4187158/china-air-quality-greenpeace/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4187158/china-air-quality-greenpeace/"},"headline":"366 of China's Cities Don't Have Safe Air, Greenpeace Says","datePublished":"2016-01-20T17:37:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:17:33.956Z","description":"A new report says air quality across China remains \"a major health hazard\"","url":"https://time.com/4187158/china-air-quality-greenpeace/","keywords":["Environment","China","greenpeace"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta5017bfa7151a0af/698879d5196cf40815039f1a/china-pollution.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ed Flanagan / NBC News"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta5017bfa7151a0af/698879d5196cf40815039f1a/china-pollution.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"People wear protective masks near the Bund during a polluted day in Shanghai, China, January 19, 2016. 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