Brussels, 20/09/2006 (Agence Europe) - It is in the road transport, domestic heating and agriculture sectors that the highest levels of pollution from diffuse sources are recorded in the EU, according to the first consolidated European inventory of pollution from small, scattered sources, which the European Commission has just published. Using 2003 data, the inventory covers all emissions to air and water, with the exception of emissions from industrial installations. For most of the 25 pollutants covered by the inventory 25 pollutants covered by the inventory, these three sectors produce more than 90% of the emissions from all sources combined - cars, planes, ships, household boilers, small farms, military activities, gas distribution,; roofing and road paving with asphalt and solvent use. More worrying still, for some pollutants, emissions from diffuse sources can exceed total releases from major industrial installations. For example, annual emissions of copper into the atmosphere from road transport totalled 260 tonnes (EU25, 2001-2003), almost double the 136 tonnes released by major regulated industries (EU25, 2004). The main source is vehicle brakes which contain copper.
In a press release, Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said, “This first inventory of pollution from small or non-industrial sources will contribute to protecting people's health and the environment. With this inventory we will now have a complete picture of the sources and total amounts of pollutants. This in turn will enable us to develop better targeted and thus more effective policies for fighting pollution”.
Until now, detailed EU-wide emissions data have only been compiled for major industrial sources, like factories of power stations. The inventory of diffuse pollution represents an important first step towards the development of a future European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (European PRTR), due to be published in autumn 2009 on the basis of 2007 data. The European PRTR will cover more than 91 substances, and will track emissions to air, water and land and the off-site transfer of waste and waste water from both major installations and diffuse sources. It will be more comprehensive than, and will replace, the current European Pollutant Emission Register (EPER), launched in 2004. Like EPER, it will be jointly managed by the Commission and the European Environment Agency (EEA). (The inventory of diffuse sources of pollution for 2003 is available on http: //http://www.eper.ec.europa.eu )