Brussels, 10/12/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 10 December, the European Commission decided to refer Poland to the Court of Justice of the EU over persistently high levels of dust particles that pose a major risk to public health.
In Poland, the daily limit values for airborne particles (PM10) have been persistently exceeded in 35 out of 46 air quality zones studied for the last five years at least. In nine zones, the annual limit values have also been persistently exceeded.
PM10 pollution in Poland is predominantly caused by low-stack emissions (from sources with a height lower than 40 metres) from household heating. The Commission deems the measures taken by the Polish authorities to limit this phenomenon “insufficient”.
The directive on air quality (2008/50) requires the member states to limit the exposure of the citizens to these particles, which can lead to asthma, cardiovascular issues, lung cancer and premature deaths, which exceed the annual number of road traffic accident deaths. It lays down exposure limits covering both annual concentration (40 ìg/m³) and daily concentration (50 ìg/m³), and the latter may not be exceeded more than 35 times per calendar year.
In June, the Commission brought Belgium and Bulgaria before the Court of Justice of the EU due to abnormally high levels of PM10 particles (see EUROPE 11338). In all, 16 infringement actions are open against member states over PM10 particles. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)