Brussels ‘must copy London’s low-emission zones’ and save 900 lives a year, experts argue

More than a hundred doctors and environmentalists in Brussels have called on their politicians to follow London and Paris and take measures to improve the Belgian capital’s choking air pollution.

According to research by IS Global Brussels ranks eighth worst from more than 800 European cities due to nitrogen dioxide, which damages the lungs and is one of the main byproducts of combustion engines. The capital of the European Union also ranks 308th out of 858 cities for PM2.5, or fine particles, which can travel deep into the respiratory tract.

The city’s air quality is affected by traffic congestion, high corporate car ownership and a dual carriageway network in the center.

With the elections for the lower house of the Belgian federal parliament and the European and regional elections on June 9, activists are increasing the pressure on candidates to urgently tackle pollution.

“More than every year 900 Brussels residents dying prematurely due to poor air quality,” said 140 signatories an open letter organized by the activists of Les Chercheurs D’air and published on Sunday in national newspapers in Belgium.

This represents more than two deaths per day and over 10% of mortality in the capital from all causes combined, they said.

Brussels, they said, is exposed to particularly high concentrations of particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide. Fine particles, which can enter the bloodstream, can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, premature birth, attention deficit disorders in children and increase the risk of diabetes.

The health activists are calling on Brussels to follow in the footsteps of London and Paris and introduce strict low-emission zones sooner than currently planned.

“The fact that there is a division of powers between the Brussels municipalities and the region does not help to quickly implement a strong clean air policy. But it also has to do with a lack of political courage,” says Pierre Dornier, director of Les Chercheurs D’air.

“Sadiq Khan in London and Anne Hidalgo in Paris, for example, fight more passionately for improving air quality than many Brussels leaders. They allow ambitious measures to be introduced, maintained and strengthened, even when vocal minorities oppose them.”

Paris and Amsterdam plan to ban all fossil fuel cars by 2030, while London has expanded its ultra-low emissions zone despite fierce opposition.

“In Brussels we will have to wait until 2035 at the earliest before we are rid of all fossil fuels. And some politicians are asking to postpone or even cancel the phasing out of diesel engines,” said Dornier.

“It is our job to combat air pollution in Brussels. What we want to achieve is that we give Brussels residents the right to breathe air that is not toxic and that does not harm their health.”