China's top legislature will convene an extraordinary session on air pollution control from July 9 to 10.

"Legislators are expected to review a report on the implementation of the Air Pollution Control Law, and a draft decision on strengthening the comprehensive protection of the environment and supporting the fight against pollution in accordance with the law," said a statement issued after a chairpersons' meeting on July 2.

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) sent four teams to the country's eight provincial-level regions to check the implementation of the Air Pollution Control Law from May to June. They also entrusted local legislatures in the other 23 provincial-level areas with law enforcement inspection.

"The inspection was carried out by the 13th NPC Standing Committee in its first year of performing duties, with the aim of promoting the implementation of the major decisions and plans of the Communist Party of China Central Committee on environmental protection and pollution control, ensuring the comprehensive, effective law enforcement, solving prominent environmental problems of public concern, and strengthening legal protection for making the skies blue again," said the NPC Standing Committee.

The report on the implementation of the Air Pollution Control Law, which was originally scheduled for the session in August, will be deliberated in the extraordinary session in advance.

The NPC Standing Committee session is held every two months, but can be convened temporarily for special purposes.

Two extraordinary sessions were held by the 12th NPC Standing Committee, to handle electoral fraud in Liaoning Province in September 2016 and to review a draft revision to the Constitution in January 2018.

China has identified preventing and controlling pollution as one of three "tough battles" in the process of building the moderately prosperous society, along with forestalling and defusing major risks, and carrying out targeted poverty alleviation.

(Xinhua News Agency July 8, 2018)