This research and survey on scattered coal reduction was a collaborative endeavor launched by the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (SEE) in 2022, in partnership with Energy Foundation China. SEE joined forces with four NGO partners to spearhead initiatives related to scattered coal reduction across residential, industrial, and agricultural sectors.

Through field visits, the project researchers elucidated the current state and challenges of scattered coal management in key areas of air pollution. They found that initial achievements have been made in industrial scattered coal reduction. However, there are significant regional differences in technical solutions for replacing scattered coal in residential areas, and market-oriented solutions are still lacking. In the agricultural sector, there is still room for improvement and policy support is necessary.

The SEE researchers believe that the collaborative approach they adopted with local NGO partners helped identify and verify problems better at the regional level. They hope their work provides local case studies and other scientific evidence for a future national policy system addressing the control of scattered coal comprehensively. They also hope their findings can facilitate the shift of heating in rural areas toward cleaner and lower carbon alternatives.