Pollution air quality – Photo by Johannes Plenio from Pexels
(STRASBOURG) – MEPs adopted a provisional political agreement with EU states Wednesday on measures to improve Europe’s air quality so it is no longer harmful to human health, natural ecosystems and biodiversity.
Air pollution continues to be the number one environmental cause of early death in the EU, with around 300,000 premature deaths per year (check here to see how clean the air is in European cities).
The new rules set stricter 2030 limits and target values for pollutants with a severe impact on human health, including particulate matter (PM2.5, PM10), NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), and SO2 (sulphur dioxide). Member states may request that the 2030 deadline be postponed by up to ten years, if specific conditions are met.
If the new national rules are violated, those affected by air pollution will be able to take legal action, and citizens may receive compensation if their health has been damaged.
More air quality sampling points will also be set up in cities and currently-fragmented air quality indices across the EU will become comparable, clear and publicly available.
Parliament rapporteur Javi Lopez MEP hailed the agreement as a “significant victory in our continuous commitment to secure a safer, cleaner environment for all Europeans”.
“By updating air quality standards, some of which were established nearly two decades ago, pollution will be halved across the EU, paving the way for a healthier, more sustainable future,” he said.
The law now also has to be adopted by Council, before being published in the EU Official Journal and entering into force 20 days later. EU countries will then have two years to apply the new rules.
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