BEIJING -- A total of 180 officials have been held accountable for environmental violations discovered during China's latest environmental inspections, according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

As of Monday, inspection teams sent by the central government have dealt with 13,718 complaints on environmental problems from the public in five provinces, of which 11,102 have been handed to relevant provincial authorities, according to the ministry, adding that 5,222 have been settled or partially solved.

This came after the country sent five teams, the first batch of its third round of environmental inspections, to Fujian, Henan, Hainan, Gansu and Qinghai provinces last month.

The inspections are part of the country's efforts to fight pollution and environmental degradation as the country strives to push forward with environmentally friendly development over the years to come.