Clean Air Forum: Cities and regions urge EU to align with WHO air quality guidelines by 2035

​Representatives of EU regions and cities met with Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius at the EU Clean Air Forum in Rotterdam to highlight the need to align the EU's air quality legislation with the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines by 2035. The proposal for directive is currently subject of trilogue negotiations between the European Commission, European Parliament and the Council of the EU.

CoR rapporteur Una Power (IE/Greens) and Zero Pollution Stakeholder Platform co-chair Marieke Schouten (NL/Greens) intervened at the EU Clean Air Forum ​on 24 November and held bilateral meetings with Virginijus Sinkevičius, Commissioner for Environment, Ocean and Fisheries, in which they stressed that EU cities and regions support ambitious air quality targets to protect environment and citizens' health. A new report ​published by the European Environmental Agency at the Clean Air Forum underlines that a full alignment with the WHO guidelines could have prevented more ​than 250 000 deaths in Europe this year.​​

"As local representatives we are implementing on the ground policies needed to fight pollution and, at the same time, we see up close the impact of pollution on the well-being of our communities. The costs of an ambitious policy to fight air pollution are far outweighed by the benefits for the economy, nature, climate and particularly health, especially considering the cost of inaction. The CoR supports the limit values set by the European Commission for 2030, but calls for full alignment with the science-based WHO Air Quality Guidelines by 2035, so as to protect citizens' health and to contribute to achieving the EU's zero pollution objective for 2050", said Ms Power, Member of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. 

A higher 2035 target is also supported by the European Parliament, but the CoR goes even further by allowing fewer exceedances for some pollutants and adding limit values for ozone. The opinion adopted in July also highlights the general lack of ​specifically targeted EU funding for air quality to local authorities, as well as the need for better guidance and monitoring. 

"Health is one of the main aspects of the Zero Pollution Action Plan, and pollution is the leading environmental cause of disease and premature death around the world. Currently 97% of Europe's urban population is exposed to levels of particulate matter pollution above the thresholds recommended by the WHO. Air pollution also exacerbates existing inequities, including health disparities. Strengthening public information on air quality is therefore an important public health measure. The air quality index should include user-friendly information that is comparable among Member States and accessible to the general public", said Ms Schouten, Alderman of the municipality of Nieuwegein. 

The Clean Air Forum is a biannual event organised by the European Commission. Mayor of Rotterdam Ahmed Aboutaleb(NL/PES), alternate member of CoR, opened the Forum's second day with Commissioner Sinkevičius.

"The proposal for an Air Quality Directive is not only about stricter standards for air quality. It is also about a strong European source policy for all forms of emissions from road traffic, shipping, wood burning and industry. And of course, we also need the right tools to stimulate the desired transitions and enforce the rules. Without these right conditions local authorities can't meet the new objectives by themselves", Mr Aboutaleb said.