Hebei province is to receive more than half of a new 5 billion yuan ($827 million) special fund from the central government for air pollution control, the provincial finance department announced on Wednesday.

Workers tear down a production facility at a cement factory in Sanhe, Hebei province, on Friday. Facilities were demolished at 11 cement factories in Hebei on that day as part of a drive to clean up industry and reduce pollution. [Photo/Xinhua]

In a report to the 12th People's Congress of Hebei, the finance department said Hebei will be given 2.62 billion yuan as both a reward and a subsidy for its efforts last year to contain the development of polluting industries and develop greener industries.

Five other regions - Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Shandong and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region - were also given large amounts by the Ministry of Finance as subsidies for curbing pollution.

The amount of money each region gets is determined by how well they fulfilled their pollution reduction targets and how much they invested in tackling the problem, among other efforts.

Of the six regions that received the funds, Hebei has more serious problems, with at least five cities having appeared in the list of 10 cities with the worst air quality every month.

In 2013, the province allocated more than 16.5 billion yuan to projects for energy conservation and environmental protection, an annual increase of 28.8 percent, according to the government work report of 2013.

Based on preliminary statistics, the province will have met the reduction targets for air pollutants, with emissions of sulfur dioxide cut by 4.2 percent from 2012 and nitrogen oxide emissions lowered by 5.7 percent, said Chen Guoying, head of the provincial environmental protection department on Wednesday.

The heavy smog that frequently hits the province has forced the public and government to set environmental protection as a priority. The province has taken tough measures to reduce emissions. In 2013, Hebei shut 8,347 small companies causing heavy pollution and reduced the outdated production of steel by 7.88 million metric tons and cement by 17.16 million tons, the 2013 report said.