Beijing, Jun 6 (IANS): Water quality of the Yellow River, China's second-longest river, has improved in the past five years, the environment authority said.

The river's water quality improved from mild pollution to good during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

About 84.7 per cent of the surface water in the river was graded Class I to III (good quality) in 2020, up 25.6 percentage points from 2016, Xinhua news agency reported citing the Ministry as saying.

For the tributaries, 80.2 per cent of the surface water was graded as good quality in 2020, up 31.2 percentage points from 2016.

Surface water quality in China is divided into five classes, with Class I being the best.

In 2020, China reported improved air and water quality as well as reduced carbon dioxide emissions amid the country's efforts to boost green development, an official report showed in March.

Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai province, the Yellow River flows through nine provinces, and it empties into the Bohai Sea near the city of Dongying in Shandong.