Lishui in Zhejiang province boasts a superior ecological environment. [Photo/lsnews.com.cn]

Lishui in East China's Zhejiang province officially released the first Technical Regulation for Ambient Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) local municipal standard in China on Aug 3.

The standard is of great significance for the safeguarding of local people's health. It is based on the air quality index released by Lishui Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau and the Policy Research Center for Environment and Economy of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

The standard also took the air quality index evaluation system in domestic and foreign big cities as examples, and tailored it to the ecological advantages and development needs of Lishui.

In July 2019, at the 16th WALCC (World Alliance for Low Carbon Cities) Assembly and Low-Carbon City Development World Forum, Lishui released the Lishui city (Yunhe) environmental air quality health index, becoming the first city on the Chinese mainland to officially release the index.

AQHI is a scale designed in Canada in 2008 to help understand the impact of air quality on health. It is a health protection tool used to inform decisions to reduce short-term exposure to air pollution by adjusting activity levels during periods of increased levels of air pollution.