In the past we relied mainly on administrative measures to cope with haze; why not try economic mechanisms? For example, many thermal power plants do not invest in saving coal because the amount of money saved is too small to cover the research costs. If the resource tax covers the coal industry, the whole industrial chain will be affected, encouraging more enterprises to save energy and cut emissions.

Jia Kang, former director of the Research Institute for Fiscal Science, China Environment News, Oct 14

China burns the most coal in the world, which is a major cause of smog. Behind the large amount of coal consumption lies the country's high economic reliance on low-end industries. To get rid of smog permanently, China needs technology innovation and economic transition to upgrade its industries. The more efficiently China drives the restructuring process, the sooner its people will breathe clean air again.