Beijing plans to list smog as a meteorological disaster

Beijing included smog as a meteorological disaster in its draft of a new prevention and control regulation that was under review on Thursday.

Listing smog in the regulation would require the capital to improve urban planning - including better design of green zones and corridors - to reduce damage from smog.

Liu Zhengang, chief of the Beijing Legal Affairs Office, said on Thursday that it's appropriate to make the inclusion since smog and its negative effects have grown into a major concern for the government and public.