Every breath we take – air quality in Europe

Photo: Toni Blay/flickr.com/CC BY-NC-ND

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. They include, among others, the state of Europe’s air today, main information sources, links between climate change and air, the way different pollutants can form in the atmosphere, and a short overview of the European legislation affecting air quality. The 2013 edition is prepared in the context of the European Year of Air, when EU policy makers are planning to revisit air quality laws.

It was launched in Ireland at the Air Science Policy Forum, an event organised on 15 April by the Irish Environmental Protection Agency and Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, as part of the Irish Presidency of the European Union.

While air quality in Europe has improved greatly in recent decades, air pollution is still a problem with severe impacts. Air pollution can trigger and aggravate respiratory diseases; it can damage forests, acidify soils and waters, reduce crop yields and corrode buildings.

In particular, pollution from particulate matter (PM) and pollution from ozone pose serious health risks to European citizens. Almost one-third of Europe’s city dwellers are still exposed to concentrations of airborne PM that exceed the EU limit values. Even worse, more than 90 per cent of the urban population is exposed to levels of PM and ozone in excess of the World Health Organization’s recommended guidelines. Air pollution is also found to reduce the life expectancy of the average city dweller by eight months in Europe, or up to two years in some areas.

Emissions from car exhausts in urban areas; forest fires; ammonia emitted by agriculture; coal-fired power plants across the planet; and even volcano eruptions affect the quality of the air we breathe. In some cases, the pollutant sources are located thousands of kilometres away from where the damage occurs. Moreover, many air pollutants contribute to climate change and climate change itself is going to affect air quality in the future.

The Signals report will be made available in 26 European languages as an e-book and PDF. It will also be available in print in some languages.

For more information and to download the report, go to: http://www.eea.europa.eu/

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

Every breath we take – air quality in Europe

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

Do Your Bit!