EU set to tighten rules on deadly air pollution

The European Commission put forward tougher air and water pollution rules for the European Union on Wednesday that would more than halve the maximum permitted airborne concentration of certain pollutants by 2030, but still fall short of World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations.

"We pay for pollution with taxes, health and human lives,” European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans told reporters in Brussels. "And the longer we wait to reduce this pollution, the higher the costs to society.”

Part of a wider goal to eliminate dangerous pollution in the environment by 2050, the proposal unveiled Wednesday would also list new 25 water pollutants as harmful substances, including PFAs (so-called ‘forever chemicals'), and make it easier for citizens to seek compensation from polluters, according to a press release published by the European Commission.

Europe's biggest environmental killer

Air pollution, one of the leading environmental risks to health worldwide, led to more than 350,000 premature deaths in the European Union in 2019, figures from the European Environment Agency show.

Of particular concern is fine particulate matter, which comes from industry, transport and energy production, and is linked to heart problems, asthma, and lung cancer, to name but a few. Ozone and nitrogen dioxide exposure are also linked to thousands of deaths each year.

To tackle this, the EU executive branch wants to see the maximum legal concentration of fine particulate matter capped at 10 micrograms per cubic metre by the end of the decade, a significant reduction from the current level of 25 µg/m³.

Critics slam disregard for science

However, the new proposed limit is still double what the WHO now deems neutral, if still not definitely not safe, for human health, as EU parliamentarians and campaign groups were quick to point out.

"We are faced with a public health emergency from air pollution - tackling it requires political will, for immediate and long-lasting health benefits,” Anne Staufer, Deputy Director of the non-governmental group Health and Environment Alliance, said in a press statement, also calling for full compliance with WHO standards.

German member of the European Parliament Michael Bloss slammed the commission's plans in a statement on Wednesday, accusing EU officials of "cherry-picking” when it came to following WHO advice.

"In doing so, [the Commission] endangers the health of Europe's citizens and ignores minimum scientific standards,” he wrote.

Long-standing problem

The stringency of the proposed measures aside, most member states already fail to meet all of the current standards, which date back to 2008.

Air pollution has been improving in much of the bloc in the past three decades, with related premature deaths down 33% since 2005. But according to the European Environmental Agency, 96% of Europe's urban population were exposed in 2020 to levels of fine particulate matter deemed unsafe by the WHO.

Growing citizen concern

In recent years, citizens and campaign groups in a number of countries – most recently in Belgium - have sued local or national authorities for failing to tackle the problem.

The European Commission itself has taken many of the member states to the European Court of Justice, the high EU court - including Germany, France, Italy and Poland - for air pollution management.

Asked at a press conference why the commission had not fully aligned with WHO standards, European Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius said that the proposals accounted for “technical feasibility” and “socio-economic considerations.” The intention was to comply “as soon as new technology and policy developments allow” and by 2050 at the latest, he said.

The new rules will now be subject to debate in the European Parliament and among the 27 EU member states, and could undergo revision. They could come into force in 2024.

Edited by Andreas Illmer