China's efforts to control air and water pollution could become strong drivers of a sustainable economy, experts said.

Since the Action Plan on Air Pollution Prevention and Control was released in September 2013, the quality of air has improved. Last year the air quality exceeded national standards on 241 days, 20 more than in 2013, according to the Ministry of Environmental Protection'.

The improvement continued this year. In 74 major cities, the number of days with good air quality accounted for 68 percent of the first six months, a year-on-year rise of 6.9 percent, said Luo Yi, head of the ministry's Environmental Monitoring Department.