Guangdong's Zhanjiang followed Guangzhou to rank eighth among 100 cities in 30 provinces for its strong comprehensive ability to carry out environmental protection development, as released in a report on Dec 24.

The Regional Comparison of China Green Development Index Report 2016 was issued in Beijing at the China High-end Forum on Green Development, co-sponsored by the School of Economics and Resource Management of Beijing Normal University, the Institute of Development Studies, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, and the China Economic Monitoring and Analysis Center.

The coastal city of Zhanjiang in Guangdong carries out green development. [Photo by Ou Yangze/gdzjdaily.com.cn]

The research assessed the performance of cities in green development, including forest coverage and bearing capacities for resources and the environment. Government support and incentives given toward environmental protection was also one of the appraisal indicators.

A national-level pilot city in ecological protection, Zhanjiang boasts an outstanding performance in air quality improvement and city greening. The density of PM 2.5 -- the smallest and most hazardous airborne pollutant -- maintained a range of 10 to 15 micrograms per cubic meter the whole of last year, according to the Zhanjiang Environmental Protection Agency.

The top 10 cities according to the report were Haikou, Shenzhen, Karamay, Changsha, Qingdao, Beihai, Guangzhou, Zhanjiang, Beijing and Suzhou.

The Green Development Index Report Series has been announced annually since 2010.