Just under 240,000 deaths per year in the European Union can be attributed to exposure to fine particulate matter, a key air pollutant, according to the latest European Environment Agency (EEA) air quality health impact assessment published today as the new EU rules enter into force. The latest data also confirm, yet again, that Europeans remain exposed to air pollutant concentrations considerably above recommended World Health Organization (WHO) levels. A separate assessment also found that nearly three quarters of Europe’s ecosystems are exposed to damaging levels of air pollution.
Despite the challenges in reducing our exposure to air pollutants, the data confirm a trend that the estimated impact on health caused by long-term exposure to three key air pollutants (fine particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide and ozone) is improving, according to the EEA briefing ‘Harm to human health from air pollution in Europe: burden of disease status 2024’.
Between 2005 and 2022, the number of deaths in the EU attributable to fine particulate matter or PM2.5 fell by 45%, remaining on track to achieve the 55% reduction target outlined in the EU zero pollution action plan for 2030.
It is good news for all citizens that we have stricter EU air quality rules in place as of today, but still too many people across Europe, especially those in cities are negatively affected by poor air quality resulting in illness and premature deaths, which are largely preventable through reducing the levels of these pollutants in the environment. Air pollution has wider negative impacts as well, damaging the health of our ecosystems, making it even more important to redouble our efforts to clean our air.
The revised ambient air quality directive, which entered into force today, brings the EU air quality limits values closer to the WHO standards, supporting further reductions in the health impacts of air pollution over the coming years. Still, air pollution continues to be the top environmental health risk to Europeans (followed by other factors such as exposure to noise, chemicals and the increasing effects of climate-related heatwaves on health), causing chronic illness and attributable deaths, especially in cities and urban areas.
According to latest EEA estimates, at least 239,000 deaths in the EU in 2022 were attributable to exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution above the WHO recommended concentration of 5 µg/m3. 70,000 deaths are attributable to exposure to ozone (O3) pollution and 48,000 deaths to exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution.
Source: EEA
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