MEPs push city air standards

By Emily Smith

Date: 22/06/06

EU cities could find themselves with new air pollution laws sooner than expected, following meetings in the European Parliament and Council this month.

Environment committee MEPs on Wednesday (21 June) voted through revised air-quality standards for pollutants such as ozone and particulates, which Parliamentarians hope could be followed by a first reading agreement on the directive.

The vote was delayed from May to allow MEPs more time to reach a cross-party compromise, in the hope of then finalising a deal with governments before the proposal comes up for second reading.

"The compromise reached in committee this week could make possible a first reading agreement with Council," said an adviser to MEP Holger Krahmer, responsible for guiding the proposal through Parliament. "Of course that is for Council to decide," he added.

EU ministers are expected to agree their approach to the proposal at an Environment Council meeting on 27 June.

If they do not decide to ask the Commission to manage a first-reading agreement based on this and the environment committee text, a full sitting of MEPs will vote on the directive in September and the debate will go on to a second reading next year.

The adviser was, however, optimistic that a compromise between Parliamentarians and ministers was possible at this stage. "The differences [between Council and Parliament positions] are there, of course, but we have room for manoeuvre and can negotiate."

Environmentalists are furious at the thought of the directive being agreed in its current state.

Kerstin Meyer of the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) was particularly unhappy to see the environment committee voting to allow member states up to ten years to meet the new standards.

"Implementation of the existing 1999 air-quality standards is already useless," said Meyer. "A recent report from the EEB showed that in practice half of all member states didn't implement standards before the legal deadline had passed and the Commission took legal action."

Krahmer claims the ten- year transition period would only be allowed in exceptional circumstances, but Meyer said opening up the possibility of further delays would be courting disaster.

According to Parliament, EU cities should be allowed to exceed the agreed emission standards for 55 days a year, rather than 35 as is the case for existing standards.

They would, however, have to bring the average annual emissions of fine particles (PM10) and super-fine particles (PM2.5) down from levels supported by ministers.

Only the PM10 average would be binding, with a legal standard for PM2.5 put off until 2015.

A statement from seven green groups this month laid out the urgency of helping Europeans breathe more easily. Air pollution leads to 370,000 deaths and 100,000 hospital admissions in Europe every year, according to the environmentalists, and could be taking up as much as 9% of EU gross domestic product.

"At the same time," it concludes, "many measures to improve urban air quality are not only cost-effective but would also help combat climate change."

Recommended actions include improving energy efficiency and leaving the car at home more often.

Author says that EU cities could find themselves with new air pollution laws sooner than expected, following meetings in the European Parliament and Council in June 2006. EU Ministers were expected to agree their approach to the proposal at an Environment Council meeting on 27 June 2006.