European Union finalizes stronger ambient air quality standards
25 October 2024
The European Council has formally adopted a directive setting updated air quality standards across the EU. The strengthened air quality standards will become effective from 1 January 2030.
The new rules will contribute to the EU’s objective on zero pollution by 2050 and will help prevent premature deaths due to air pollution, the Council said in a press release. EU citizens will be able to seek compensation for damage to their health in cases where EU air quality rules are not respected. Member states may request that the 2030 deadline be postponed if specific conditions are met.
The updated standards follow the political agreement reached in February 2024 between the EU Parliament and the Council. The adopted exposure limits for ambient air pollutants are consistent with the EU Commission proposal of October 2022 (see the EU 2030 values).
The revised air quality standards for air pollutants are more closely aligned with the WHO air quality guidelines. Those pollutants include, among others, particulate matter PM10 and PM2.5, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide. For PM2.5, the current annual limit of 25 µg/m3 will be tightened to 10 µg/m3, matching the WHO 2005 guideline.
Under the new directive, member states must also, for the first time, monitor ambient concentrations of ultrafine particles (UFP, defined as particles below 100 nm). Ultrafines will be monitored through a measurement of particle number (PN) concentrations and particle size distributions (PSD), in accordance with the European standards EN 16976 and CEN/TS 17434.
The adopted text will be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force on the twentieth day following publication. Member states will have two years after the entry into force to transpose the directive into national law. The EU Commission will review the air quality standards by 2030 and every five years thereafter, in line with latest scientific evidence.
Source: EU Council