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Policy initiatives
At the international level there are a number of agreements, or conventions, that have been reached with the aim of regulating emissions of air pollutants.
The Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (the LRTAP Convention) was signed by some 30 countries in Europe and North America in 1979. It currently has 51 signatories and has been extended in eight protocols, the most recent being the so-called Gothenburg Protocol signed in 1999, which went into force in 2005.
For long time international shipping was a more or less unregulated source of air pollution. While pollutant emissions from land-based sources are gradually coming down, those from shipping show a continuous increase. An air pollution annex to the IMO’s MARPOL Convention entered into force in May 2005 and developments are also under way within the EU.
Until the early nineties, European Union policy regarding air pollution tended to be fragmented. Today the work is more strategically oriented.
A directive establishing emission ceilings for four air pollutants was adopted in 2001. That same year also saw the launch of the Clean Air For Europe Programme (CAFE), which in 2005 lead to the adoption of a thematic strategy on air pollution. The EU has also been a driving force in the international climate negotiations (see below).
The basis of international policy for dealing with climate change is the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which was signed in 1992 and came into effect in 1994. It has been extended in the Kyoto Protocol, which came into effect in 2005. Negotiations on the next commitment period are currently ongoing.
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June 2010
EU Parliament votes for stronger pollution directive
On 4 May the European Parliament’s environment ..
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June 2010
North American ship pollution will be curbed
The emission control area off North American coasts ..
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June 2010
The poor legacy of Copenhagen
Commitments made after Copenhagen are far from ..
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March 2010
New EU sulphur regulations in ports
From 1 January 2010, ships using ports within the EU are ..
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March 2010
Air pollution abatement - success and failures
The convention on long range air pollution has helped to clear ..
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March 2010
Cutting NOx emissions - the Norwegian way
Through an agreement between the Norwegian ..
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December 2009
Make ships pay for their NOx emissions
A differentiated en-route charge would be an ..
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December 2009
Shipping emissions up - land-based slightly down
Air pollutant emissions from land-based sources in ..
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October 2009
Most rich Kyoto countries off track
Many rich countries will not be able to meet their ..
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June 2009
Cleaner ship fuels to save American lives
The US and Canada want ships to burn cleaner fuel when
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March 2009
16 EU member states exceed emisson limits
Only eleven member states expect to comply with their ..
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March 2009
Strong – and weak
The EU climate package - finally approved last ..
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December 2008
Climate policies improve health
Health savings of up to 25 billion euro could be ..
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October 2008
Critical air pollution legislation delayed
Citizens groups for the environment and health ..
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June 2008
Beneficial to cut pollution from large plants
The use of up-to-date emission control techniques in European power plants ..
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March 2008
EU wants to show the way – but is aiming low
The EU Commission’s climate package calls for a 20-per-cent reduction in emissions
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December 2007
Most things can be fixed
Environmental journalist Fred Pearce looks at political development on air ..
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December 2007
Much has been done - but still plenty to do
Good progress has been made in improving air quality in Europe. But many ..
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September 2007
Clear benefits from combined abatement
More consideration must be given to the links between climate change and ..
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March 2007
EU leaders agree on new climate target
The Spring Council meeting of EU heads of government i Brussels on 8–9 March ..
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December 2006
More clean air per euro
Cutting ship emissions would be far more costeffective than further measures for ..
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Every communication and directive has a number, by which the text can be found by using the search function in the PreLex database. All documents are available in all official EU languages. Hard copies can also be ordered from national distributors of EU documents. |
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