While air pollution in Europe is above the levels recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), international organizations are looking for a solution to the problem. According to data from the European Environment Agency, if WHO recommendations had been followed since 2021; 253 thousand deaths could have been prevented in the EU. It is also reflected in the statistics that Europeans exposed to air pollution die due to diseases such as lung cancer, heart disease, asthma and diabetes.
COPERNICUS EXPLAINED
The European Union is on track to implement one of the world’s most ambitious air quality regulations, according to the latest report by the EU’s climate and environment organization Copernicus. Under the “Ambient Air Quality Directives”, member states are preparing to set strict monitoring and evaluation standards. The framework for the new directives is determined by Copernicus, the earth observation component of the EU Space Programme, and in particular by the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.
APPLICATION IS NEXT
The revised European Ambient Air Quality Directives (AAQD) were adopted at the EU meeting of the European Parliament on 24 April 2024. Then it was time for implementation. It was stated that the agreement made between the EU Council and the institutions in question was an important step towards acceptance, and the legislation was published in the EU Official Journal after being adopted by both the European Parliament and the European Council. EU member states now have two years to transpose the created directives into their national law.
CHECK YOUR WEATHER
In this context, the European Environment Agency has launched an application for European citizens to check the air quality data of the Air Quality Index. The latest version of the application includes air quality modeling across Europe, as well as hourly updated information from more than 3,500 air quality monitoring stations in Europe. Users can check air quality anywhere in Europe. The app is available in 24 European languages.
WHAT IS THE SITUATION IN TURKEY?
While Turkey has set the European Union limit values as its target for air quality limit values, it plans to reach these target values gradually. According to the plan in question, Turkey will reach the nitrogen dioxide limit values in 2024 at the latest and will apply EU legislation for all pollutant parameters from this date onwards.
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