Some local authorities in China are resorting to ‘quick fixes’ to comply with strict regulations imposed by the 2014 revised Environmental Protection Law. Such tactics must be stopped: they mask pollution issues that could defeat long-term environmental goals.

For example, to pre-empt scrutiny and quickly improve air-quality rankings in Lanshan, Shandong province, 300 or so restaurants were shut and production at more than 400 wooden-fibreboard factories was stopped. Many of these businesses had pollution-control measures in place (www.mee.gov.cn). In another case, farmers in Shangcai, Henan, were told to harvest 5 hectares of wheat by hand to avoid dust from mechanized harvesting affecting readings at a nearby air-monitoring site (J. Qu Chutian Metropolis Daily 10 June 2019). Air-quality monitoring data have also been manipulated in Xi’an, Shaanxi (D. Liu and S. Wang Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 16, 4963–4966; 2019).

Local leaders’ success should be measured by their progress on long-term environmental improvements. Regional governments should therefore be allowed a reasonable period to address environmental issues. The focus should be on tackling underlying causes of environmental problems, with technical backing from central government, rather than on misguided quick fixes.