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We call on the European Union to fully align EU air quality standards with the latest available science to protect our health.

The EU's legally binding limits for air pollutants should be based on science, and be at least as strict as WHO regularly updated guidelines.

Why is this important?

The biggest environmental health risk in Europe: pollution of the air we breathe. [1] Air pollution leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths in Europe every year. [2] EU standards for air quality are supposed to protect us - but national governments fail to keep them, and they aren’t even 100% based on science.

But there’s a pathway to change: the EU Parliament is about to vote on air quality standards this month. [3] The vote will be a big signal for the EU Commission to propose new standards for air quality next year.

When the EU decided the current standards in 2008, they were the result of a political compromise, heavily guided by our national governments’ lack of commitment to our health. New research demonstrates the harmful effects of polluted air especially for children, with possible lifelong consequences -- like asthma, childhood cancers, and chronic diseases. [4]

That’s why this month’s vote in the EU Parliament is so important. A massive petition about this topic could sway many MEPs on the fence, or those that don’t even know this vote is coming. If the Commission sees that a strong majority of the EU Parliament support science-based air quality standards that put people's health first, they’ll be under pressure to set a high ambition for Europe’s new air quality standards.

References:

https://www.env-health.org/issues/air-quality/
https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/air
https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/air-quality-in-europe-2020-report
https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/air/health-impacts-of-air-pollution
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/20/limiting-air-pollution-could-prevent-50000-deaths-in-europe
https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?reference=2020/2091(INI)&l=en
https://www.who.int/news/item/29-10-2018-more-than-90-of-the-worlds-children-breathe-toxic-air-every-day

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Protect our health: Cleaner air now!