The environmental watchdog in Beijing has for the first time detained a man for discharging untreated emissions into the air. A new environmental police squad was set up in January to crack down on causes of air pollution, including open-air barbecues, garbage incineration and the burning of wood. An inspection by the environmental watchdog of a heating supply company in Mentougou district found that a key air pollutant reduction component did not function at all due to “operation against regulation” by a staff member, which resulted in the emission of pollutants such as sulfur dioxide at 10 times the allowed level. The company was ordered to rectify the problem and fined. The staff member was questioned and confessed to “abnormally operating” a facility to avoid supervision, thus causing air pollution. He was put under administrative detention by the Beijing police. Beijing will expand funding to reduce air pollution in 2017, including phasing out hundreds of thousands of automobiles and replacing coal furnaces in hundreds of villages, the municipal government said. The number of days with severe air pollution in Beijing fell to 39 last year, down from 46 in 2015, 47 in 2014 and 58 in 2013.