Briefing der European Environment Agency, 15.11.2021 (engl. Originalfassung)
In 2019, air pollution continued to drive a significant burden of premature death and disease in the 27 EU Member States: 307,000 premature deaths were attributed to chronic exposure to fine particulate matter; 40,400 premature deaths were attributed to chronic nitrogen dioxide exposure; 16,800 premature deaths were attributed to acute ozone exposure.
Premature deaths attributed to air pollution decreased in 2019 in relation to 2018.
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In 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) published new air quality guidelines, updating the 2005 air quality guidelines on the basis of a systematic review of the latest scientific evidence of how air pollution damages human health.
The European Union (EU) has also set standards for key air pollutants in the ambient air quality directives. Where levels exceed these standards, Member States should prepare an air quality plan or programme to address the sources responsible and ensure compliance. Although these values were based on the 2005 WHO air quality guidelines, they also reflect the technical and economic feasibility of their attainment across EU Member States. The EU air quality standards are therefore less demanding than the WHO air quality guidelines.
Under the European Green Deal’s Zero Pollution Action Plan, the European Commission set the 2030 goal of reducing the number of premature deaths caused by PM2.5 by at least 55% compared with 2005 levels. To this end, the European Commission initiated a revision of the ambient air quality directives, aiming to align the air quality standards more closely with WHO recommendations. The revision also aims to strengthen provisions on air quality monitoring and modelling, and on the development of air quality plans to help local authorities achieve cleaner air. In parallel, stricter requirements are also foreseen to tackle air pollution at source, such as from agriculture, industry, transport, buildings and energy.
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