Firecrackers and fireworks during the celebration of the lunar New Year added up to the heavy air pollution experienced by residents in 139 Chinese cities, the official Xinhua news agency has reported.

The report quoted China's Ministry of Environmental Protection as saying that heavy air pollution was reported in 139 cities, including Beijing and Tianjin.

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The ministry said 92 cities were monitored as having heavy polluted air from 7 pm Sunday to 6 am Monday while another 42 cities reported severe incidents of air pollution during the said period.

The ministry monitors 338 major cities during the said period. All the cities monitored, the ministry said 67 were deemed to have clean air while 271 were monitored to have worse air than the national standard.

According to the ministry, PM2.5 was the major pollutant during the monitoring period. PM2.5 is a micro particulate matter that triggers hazardous smog.

"The average PM2.5 density in the 338 cities reached 148 micrograms per cubic meter, a 27.6 percent rise year on year," the Ministry of Environmental Protection said.

It added that it was between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. on Monday that the PM2.5 density in cities began to rise as people set off firecrackers and fireworks to welcome the lunar New Year.

Chinese New Year celebrations often involved firecrackers and fireworks. The Chinese tradition says that fireworks ward off evil spirits and bad luck for the New Year.

The New Year officially began on Monday but festivities get going the day before. The celebration, which is also known as the Spring Festival, also marks the largest period of mass migration as millions of Chinese people travel to bet with their families for the holiday.

TagsChina Pollution, China Air Pollution