Air pollution still killing over 300,000 in Europe each year: Report

More than 300,000 people died prematurely in the European Union (EU) countries in 2019 due to chronic exposure to fine particulate matter pollution, a new report has revealed.

The European Environment Agency (EEA), an EU body tasked with providing independent information on environment, in a report published on Monday noted that at least 58 per cent of these deaths could have been avoided if all EU member states had reached the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) air quality guideline level of 5 micrograms per cubic metre.

Germany ranks first in fatalities across the EU region, with 53,800 premature deaths recorded in a single year. It is followed by Italy with 49,900, France with 29,800 and Spain with 23,300 deaths.

The highest number of such deaths per head of population, the report notes, was in Poland, where more than 39,300 people succumbed.

Deaths linked to fine particular matter pollution were estimated at 346,000 for 2018, significantly more the subsequent year.

Frans Timmermans, executive vice-president for the European Green Deal (EGD), a set of policy initiatives by the European Commission aimed at making Europe climate neutral in 2050, termed air pollution a “grave danger to human health”.

 “In the EU alone, 400.000 people die prematurely as a result. In our fight against air pollution and the climate crisis we must tackle all harmful emissions,” he wrote in a tweet last week.

Air pollution is a grave danger to human health; in the EU alone, 400.000 people die prematurely as a result. In our fight against air pollution and the climate crisis we must tackle all harmful emissions.

Full remarks at #COP26 @CCACoalition ministerial:https://t.co/dKoe99OhQu pic.twitter.com/JlDaCThrXK

— Frans Timmermans (@TimmermansEU) November 9, 2021

Air pollution plunges in European cities amid coronavirus lockdown: Satellite data

Satellite data shows that air pollution has plunged in European cities amid coronavirus lockdown.

In the early 1990s, fine particles, which penetrate deep into lungs, caused the deaths of around one million people in 27 EU countries, according to the report.

The EEA report said that, apart from fine particulate matter, 40,400 premature deaths were due to chronic nitrogen dioxide exposure, and about 16,800 deaths were caused by acute ozone exposure.

“Investing in cleaner heating, mobility, agriculture and industry delivers better health, productivity and quality of life for all Europeans and especially for the most vulnerable,” Hans Bruyninckx, EEA executive director, said in a statement. “These investments save lives and also help accelerate progress towards carbon neutrality and strong biodiversity.”

Earlier studies have shown that air pollution is the single largest environmental health threat in Europe, resulting in over a million premature deaths in the 1990s through diseases of heart and lungs.

According to the UN health body, the whole world is grappling with the problem, with about 7 million premature deaths reported annually.

In September, the alarming statistics led the WHO to tighten its recommended limits on major air pollutants for the first time since 2005.

The new EEA report said that the new global air quality guidelines by the WHO and the EU Zero Pollution Action Plan can help further reduce the number of premature deaths due to air pollution.

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