EU countries could save 238,000 lives a year if they meet WHO air pollution guidelines

About 238,000 deaths from air pollution could be avoided every year if the EU27 countries actually met World Health Organization Guidelines for air pollution, according to figures of the European Environment Agency. And more than 400,000 deaths could be avoided if particulate air pollution could be avoided entirely.

On February 20, the EU Council agreed on new clean air legislation for 2030 and beyond. As EU countries move towards these new legal boundaries, a new study has estimated the benefits that could quickly accrue from reducing air pollution from traffic and home heating.

The academics looked at 41 European countries. They found that a 20% drop in road traffic pollution could reduce annual excess deaths across Europe by around 7,000 people per year by reducing particulate pollution. Germany tops the list with a potential decline of more than 1,000 deaths per year; for Great Britain and Italy there would be more than 500. These estimates were based on 2015 air pollution and health statistics.

A 20% reduction in air pollution from heating homes would result in approximately 13,000 fewer deaths each year. Eastern and Central Europe would benefit the most, due to the high use of solid fuels for heating. Germany, Italy, Poland, Ukraine and Turkey would each suffer more than 1,000 fewer deaths and Britain would suffer more than 650 fewer deaths.

The new study also showed that more than half of the benefits would come from fewer deaths from heart attacks, strokes and type 2 diabetes, as well as from lung cancer.

Greater ambition would yield even greater health outcomes.

Dr. Niki Paisi, who was part of the study team Climate and Atmosphere Research Center of the Cyprus Institute, said: “Of the excess deaths in Europe attributed to long-term exposure to particulate pollution, 26% and 12% of these could be avoided if emissions from residential combustion and road transport are phased out respectively. Countries such as the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary and Poland could see greater benefits from a phase-out, as these two sectors together contribute to almost 50% of particulate pollution deaths in these countries.”

These sectors are the focus of the net zero strategies, so that is clearly the case possibilities of optimizing our air pollution and climate policy for maximum health benefits.

And what about deaths from other sources of particulate pollution?

Published in 2023, A study from Barcelona ISGlobal research institute sheds some light on this and can help national and especially urban governments understand which polluting sectors they should prioritise.

Prof. Mark Nieuwenhuijsen of ISGlobal explains: “Cities are still hotspots for air pollution and premature deaths. Urgent action is needed. This requires a holistic approach that brings together many different sectors, including energy, transport, industry and agriculture.”

The Nieuwenhuijsen team has a online tool which allows the public, city councils and governments to interrogate the research database and visualize the damage from the different sources of pollution in their area.

Many of us in Britain and in countries bordering the North Sea may be surprised to see shipping listed as a substantial source of particulate pollution. For large parts of northwestern Europe, including much of Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany, agriculture is one of the biggest sources of early deaths from particulate pollution, alongside transport and home heating. This receives little public and political attention, and solutions from farmers are rarely included air pollution plans. Figures released by the British government in mid-February highlight the need for more action, with slow or no progress in reducing air pollution from farms and heating homes with solid fuels.