This is Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Here is the news.

The central government and local authorities will accelerate planning for the Xiong&`&an New Area.

China&`&s top economic planner said that in addition, those governments will provide policy and financial support for key projects and budgeting.

The National Development and Reform Commission said a master blueprint of the new area, as well as overall and detailed blueprints of the initial area are among the first plans to be mapped out.

The commission will guide the Hebei provincial government and authorities as they draft the plans to ensure they meet the high standards of quality needed for the project.

Apart from having world-class urban planning, the architecture in the new area will also showcase Chinese cultural characteristics.

The central government will also give support to major transportation, ecology, water conservation, energy, and public service projects in the new area.

China announced a historic decision to establish the Xiong&`&an New Area in Hebei province as part of measures to advance the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

The new area is similar to the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone and the Shanghai Pudong New Area. It is of national significance and "crucial for the millennium to come".

This is Special English.

China&`&s environmental watchdog has sent inspection teams to 7 cities to cope with a new round of severe smog.

The inspection teams have been sent by the Ministry of Environmental Protection. They went to cities including Beijing and Tianjin, in northern China.

Inspectors discovered factories fabricating pollutant data in some cities. A steel mill in a city was found to have shut down a pollutant detector. Those responsible have been detained by local police.

The inspection team found that smog emergency plans have been poorly implemented in Tianjin. Several cement producers in another city were found to have continued operations when they should have been suspended.

In Beijing, a ceramics producer and a paper maker cheated inspectors regarding the use of purifying equipment. A furniture plant in Hebei Province refused inspectors who were attempting to conduct inspections.

A new round of air pollution continues in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, with some cities issuing orange alerts, the second-highest in China&`&s four-tier warning system.

China has been under growing pressure to address air pollution as smog frequently smothers the country.

You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing.