Air quality regulations affect breadth of economyProtecting the atmosphere and providing clean air to breathe requires a variety of air quality regulations and regulatory tools to control pollution from various sectors of economic life. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that two million people worldwide die from air pollution every year, over half of them in developing countries. To help countries develop their own air quality standards, WHO guidelines recommend limit values for particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide. However, managing air pollution requires more than simply setting domestic standards, and necessitates complex responses involving international cooperation. The United Nations’ ‘ Agenda 21 ’ action plan, adopted at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, demonstrates the complexity of improving air quality. The blueprint identified several areas - including energy production, transport, industry and land use - where preventing atmospheric pollution must be integrated into policy objectives. Moreover, the cross-border nature of emissions requires international action. Since 1979, Europe and North America have been collaborating under the Geneva Convention on Long-range Long-range Trans-boundary Air Pollution , which commits them to gradually reducing air pollutant emissions. The convention provides a forum for strategy and policy development as well as scientific cooperation and exchange of data on emissions of major air pollutants. EU sets the standardThe substantial body of European Union legislation on air pollutants reflects the complexity of responding to air quality concerns. Over the past two decades, the EU has cut emissions of all major air pollutants with a combination of standards and controlling the emissions of major polluting sectors.EU air quality directives set health-based standards and objectives for a range of pollutants that are at least as ambitious as the WHO guidelines. Most of these were merged into one overarching directive on ambient air quality in 2008. The EU has also sought to limit emissions of air pollutants, primarily by setting national emission ceilings for four key pollutants alongside the Convention on Long-Range Trans-boundary Air Pollution. Air quality regulation also includes legislation limiting emissions from specific sources, among which transport and industrial pollution are the most prominent. The EU’s main tool for minimising industrial emissions is the Directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC), which requires high-polluting industrial and agricultural activities to apply for permits featuring limit values for air pollutants. Additionally, the Large Combustion Plant Directive limits emissions of certain pollutants from large power stations. Mounting evidence that stricter emission limits are both technically possible and necessary for health led the European Commission to overhaul the legislation in 2007, recasting seven existing air pollution directives into a single law. It estimated that additional emission reductions at LCPs alone could slash the number of premature deaths from air pollution by 13,000 annually. Transport emissions continue to rise, putting the sector among the current legislative priorities. Nevertheless, some key legislation has already been passed, like the Euro 5 and 6 standards, which cap polluting emissions from diesel and petrol cars. In addition to specific action on air pollutants, Europe hopes its ambitious climate legislation will produce cleaner air by reducing fossil fuel consumption. To read more about governmental air quality policies, please follow these links:
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