Eight countries continue to exceed their emission ceilings

Car fleet dieselisation combined with high real-life driving emissions contribute to seven countries still failing to meet NOx reduction targets.

Seven member states – Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg and Spain – continued to fail to meet their national emission ceilings for nitrogen oxides (NOx) in 2011, according to provisional emission data published by the European Environment Agency (EEA). This is an improvement from last year’s figure of eleven countries exceeding their legally binding NOx caps (see Table).

The National Emissions Ceilings (NEC) directive covers four main air pollutants: sulphur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs) and ammonia (NH₃). These pollutants can damage human health, cause acidification and eutrophication of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, damage vegetation and harm biodiversity. The emission ceilings set in the 2001 NEC directive had to be met from 2010.

According to the provisional EEA data for 2011, Denmark met its cap on ammonia, leaving Finland Germany and Spain to continue being in non-compliance. Germany remained the only member state failing to meet its cap on emissions of volatile organic compounds, although it was only exceeded by a small margin. All countries achieved their sulphur dioxide limits.

Road transport contributes approximately 40 per cent of the NOx emissions in the EU and is one of the main causes behind the large number of NOx exceedances. Emission reductions from this sector have not been as large as originally anticipated, partly because traffic and the proportion of diesel cars have grown more than expected, and partly due to inadequate emission control measures. Moreover, EU emission standards for diesel vehicles have not delivered the anticipated level of NOx reductions.

The ongoing review of EU air pollution policy (see front page) is expected to result in a revised NEC directive that sets stricter emission ceilings for 2020, 2025 or 2030 in order to further improve protection of health and the environment. National ceilings for emissions of particulate matter (PM_2.5) are also expected to be introduced. Until such new legislation is in place, however, the current NEC directive remains in force and requires countries to keep their emissions below the current national ceilings in years to come.

Christer Ågren

Source: NEC Directive status report 2012 (May 2013). EEA Technical Report No 6/2013.

Table: EU countries’ emissions compared to the national emission ceilings of the NEC directive – final data for 2010 and provisional data for 2011.

In this issue

Finding the ambition level

A tentative central ambition level for 2025 has been identified that would further reduce air pollution damage, but it is still insufficient to achieve the EU’s long-term objective of effectively protecting peoples’ health and the environment.

Editorial: Public money for public environmental goods

Potatoes, milk and bacon, almost everything we eat comes from agriculture. That is plain fact, but agriculture is also responsible for 90 per cent of the ammonia emissions and at least 11 per cent of the greenhouse gases in the European Union.

Significant cuts in carbon emissions within reach

The CO₂ emissions of the Nordic and Baltic countries can be cut by 70 per cent by 2020 or soon after, and by 95 per cent by 2030, without nuclear power and CCS, shows a new AirClim report.

Call for international nitrogen framework

A global framework on nutrients could be a way forward to address the extensive problems of pollution caused by excess nitrogen and other nutrients, suggests a recent UNEP report.

Coal pollution kills Indians

Air pollution from India’s coal power plants causes around 100,000 premature deaths every year – yet there are no national emission standards for key pollutants such as SO₂ and NOx.

Eight countries continue to exceed their emission ceilings

Car fleet dieselisation combined with high real-life driving emissions contribute to seven countries still failing to meet NOx reduction targets.

Stricter US standards for road vehicles proposed

The proposed Tier 3 standards should reduce emissions of smog-forming volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides by 80 per cent and particulate matter by 70 per cent, compared to today’s car fleet average standards.

Every breath we take – air quality in Europe

In the 2013 edition of their Signals report, the European Environment Agency (EEA) takes a closer look at air quality. “Signals 2013 – Every breath we take” consists of short and accessible articles covering a wide range of aspects related to air quality.

Call for long-term CO2 targets

The European Parliament Environment Committee has proposed a 120kph speed limit for vans from 2014 and 2025 CO₂ targets for both cars and vans.

Shipping should cut greenhouse gases and air pollutants

Due to its dependence on fossil fuels and the fact that it is one of the least regulated emission sources, emissions from the marine transport sector contribute significantly and increasingly to air pollution and climate change.

Stricter air pollution rules for machinery on the way

Emission standards for the non-road sector should be extended and strengthened in line with the Euro VI standards for road vehicles, environmental groups demand.

Coal costs health €43 billion a year

A phase-out of coal power generation is imperative, with a moratorium on new coal power plants as a first step.

CCS sidelined by tenuous financing

Carbon, capture and storage (CCS) has still not proven to be anything else than an inordinately expensive technology on an experimental level. Nevertheless the European Commission continues to embrace it.

Smaller carbon footprint from food

German diets have become more climate-friendly in the past twenty years, but there is great scope to reduce the carbon footprint from food consumption even more.

Europe’s dirty dozen

The most polluting point sources in Europe increased their carbon, sulphur and nitrogen oxides emissions in 2011.

Main menu

Eight countries continue to exceed their emission ceilings

In this issue

Finding the ambition level

Editorial: Public money for public environmental goods

Significant cuts in carbon emissions within reach

Call for international nitrogen framework

Coal pollution kills Indians

Eight countries continue to exceed their emission ceilings

Stricter US standards for road vehicles proposed

Every breath we take – air quality in Europe

Call for long-term CO2 targets

Shipping should cut greenhouse gases and air pollutants

Stricter air pollution rules for machinery on the way

Coal costs health €43 billion a year

CCS sidelined by tenuous financing

Smaller carbon footprint from food

Europe’s dirty dozen

Publications

Food for Thought

Northern forests, climate change and the UNFCCC

EU climate targets aligned with the Paris agreement’s 1.5°C objective

Baltic Sea Offshore Wind Collaborative-Learning project

Air pollution in Europe and children’s health

Climate Change: A Himalayan Odessey

No further discussion needed. The agreed global goal is to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C

Fossil-free electricity 2021

What we do

Air pollution

Climate Change

Policy initiatives

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