Many countries in the EU and its vicinity are failing to meet international and European air quality standards and are thus threatening human health, according to a joint audit report by national financial control institutions and the EU Court of Auditors published on Thursday 31 January.
The audit was carried out in fifteen countries (Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Albania, Georgia, Israel, Kosovo, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Spain and Switzerland) and was coordinated by the institutions of the Netherlands and Poland.
It shows that most of the target countries are not meeting standards, and that their governments are not taking the necessary corrective measures. Estonia, a country in compliance with all standards, is an exception. Bulgaria and Poland are the worst performing countries and are the subject of proceedings before the EU Court of Justice.
In particular, the auditors recommend developing and implementing air quality improvement plans, evaluating the effectiveness of actions, collecting relevant data and carrying out cost/benefit analyses, improving air quality monitoring systems and raising public awareness of the problem. The findings and recommendations are fully in line with the conclusions and recommendations of the European Court of Auditors in its Special Report published on 11 September 2018 (see EUROPE 12093). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)