Europe, your air is toxic
A recent collaboration between ‘The Guardian’ and the EU-funded EXPANSE project has led to the discovery that fine particulates exceed World Health Organization recommendations in most of Europe. “We’ve known for a while that the air quality is not sufficient,” states Prof. Roel Vermeulen of project coordinator Utrecht University in the Netherlands who led the EXPANSE research team that compiled the data. “It’s a harsh reality that, according to the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO), the air in Europe doesn’t meet the standards anywhere,” he comments in an EXPANSE news item. The WHO advises that annual average concentrations of fine particulates should not exceed 5 micrograms (μg) per cubic metre. The particulates in question are PM2.5 tiny airborne particles 20 to 30 times finer than a human hair that are produced when fossil fuels are burned. Inhalation of unhealthy levels of these particles has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, asthma and low birth weight.
A health crisis
The data gathered using the latest methodology, including detailed satellite images and measurements from over 1 400 ground monitoring stations, showed that a mere 2 % of Europeans live in areas where PM2.5 levels are within the 5 μg/m3 limit. The elevated particulate pollution levels to which the remaining 98 % are exposed are believed to cause as many as 400 000 deaths a year across the continent. “This is a severe public health crisis,” remarks Prof. Vermeulen in an article published in ‘The Guardian’. “What we see quite clearly is that nearly everyone in Europe is breathing unhealthy air.” The most affected country in Europe is North Macedonia, where almost two thirds of people live in areas with more than four times the WHO guidelines for PM2.5. Additionally, four areas in the country – including its capital, Skopje – have air pollution almost six times greater than the WHO limit. Eastern Europe is substantially worse off than western Europe. The only exception is Italy, where over a third of people living in the Po valley and surrounding areas in the north of the country are exposed to air four times the WHO guideline. “This is mainly due to outdated industry, such as the burning of coal in old power plants,” explains Prof. Vermeulen. Although better off than their eastern neighbours, the picture is grim for western Europe too. Three quarters of people living in Germany are exposed to more than twice the WHO figure. In Spain, this applies to 49 %, and in France to 37 % of the population. In the United Kingdom, three quarters live in areas with particulate exposure between one and two times the WHO guidance. In contrast, Sweden has no area where PM2.5 levels reach more than twice the WHO figure. Some areas in northern Scotland even fall far below the limit. “This is the best data that there is available at the moment,” comments the EXPANSE (EXposome Powered tools for healthy living in urbAN SEttings) researcher. “Now we need politicians to be bold and ambitious and take the necessary urgent steps to tackle this crisis.” For more information, please see: EXPANSE project website
Keywords
EXPANSE, air, pollution, particulate, PM2.5, health
