Air and water pollution eliminated by 2050: the EU plan

Halve the maximum limit of fine dust in the air, increase the efficiency of wastewater treatment, introduce stricter penalties against polluters and compensation for those who have suffered from pollutants. These are the key points of the new plan of the European Commission, for bring air and water pollution to zero by 2050according to the standards established by the World Health Organization.

“The longer we wait to reduce pollution, the higher the costs for society. By 2050, we want our environment to be free of harmful pollutants – stated in a press release the Vice-President of the Commission, Frans Timmermans -. Our proposals to further reduce water and air pollution are a fundamental piece of this puzzle ”.

The plan, aimed at strengthening the drive for a greener future in all 27 countries, includes one revision of the relevant European legislation, i.e. the Ambient Air Quality Directive and the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. The changes will introduce the obligation to revisions periodic of water and air, the reduction of the annual limit for fine dust pollution in the air and greater effectiveness of the treatment of waters wastewaterintroducing the obligation of nutrient extraction and extending the water treatment obligations also to small municipalities starting from a thousand inhabitants.

New standards will then be introduced on the levels of micropollutants and stricter monitoring requirements for microplasticsas well as the requirement to establish integrated water management plans in large cities and water monitoring devices for resistance antimicrobial and for the presence of viruses. Furthermore, the principle will be applied “the polluter pays“ against those who throw toxic micropollutants into the water, of which 92%, according to the Commission, come from products pharmaceuticals And cosmetics. Another key change is the establishment of a compensation mechanism for those who have been harmed by the violation of European air quality standards.

The new plan leaves the freedom to each member state to take their own specific measures to eliminate air and water pollution by 2050, but the Commission reserves the right to initiate infringement procedures against anyone who fails to achieve the goals or fail to implement European standards. Furthermore, the revision of the European legislation on the subject will introduce simpler procedures for local and regional authorities to counter and impose penalties on polluters.