Multiple air quality law breaches

In its February infringements package, the European Commission announced that it is referring Slovakia to the EU Court of Justice for breaching the daily EU limits for PM10 in the Banskobystrický region, the city of Kosice and its surrounding region, almost every year since 2005.

“The air quality measures, presented by Slovakia, have not proven to be timely and effective to reduce pollution within the agreed limits and they do not contribute to keeping the exceedance periods as short as possible, as required by EU law,” the Commission states.

Belgium, Czechia and Poland have all failed to bring nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) levels below EU limits.

In Belgium, the NO₂ limit values have been exceeded in Brussels since 2010 and in Antwerp since 2015.

In Czechia, the annual limit values for NO₂ have been exceeded in Prague and there is currently no valid air quality plan for the city.

In Poland, the annual limit values for NO₂ have been exceeded in four urban agglomerations (Warszawska, Krakowska, Wrocławska and Górnośląska). Reports show that the measures taken to tackle the NO₂ levels are not sufficient to keep the exceedance periods as short as possible.

The Commission has now sent reasoned opinions to Belgium, Czechia and Poland, and the countries have two months to reply and take the necessary measures, otherwise the Commission may refer the cases to the EU Court of Justice.

Source: European Commission, 18 February 2021.

Link: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/inf_21_441

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Main menu

Multiple air quality law breaches

In this issue

EU industrial air pollution cost up to €433 billion per year

Editorial

Recycled batteries reduce dependence on imported raw materials

CO₂ emissions from the cement industry can be reduced without CCS

Norway’s romantically named Longship CCS project

Looking back over 40 years

Agri-PV a useful synergy between agriculture and solar energy

Direct Air Capture: Billionaires dream of vacuuming carbon out of the atmosphere

Opportunities for the Renewable Energy Directive

2021 – the make or break year for climate action

In Breif

Clean air possible without lockdown

EP wants air quality law reforms

Restrict traffic in cities to tackle air pollution

Phase-out shipping emissions

Costs of shipping in the Baltic Sea

Turkey bans open-loop scrubbers

Lisbon going for electric ferries

Big benefits of shore-side electricity

Deteriorated rivers breathe out greenhouse gases

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Carbon dioxide levels are now higher than at any time in the past 3.6 million years

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