Air Pollution
Pollution racks up 9 million deaths a year worldwide
Pollution causes 9 million deaths around the world every year, according to a landmark new study which found that one in six of all deaths are linked to polluted air, water and soil.
Time to push e-mobility
Electric vehicles are an essential part of the solution to meeting Europe's climate and energy targets and the issue is becoming increasingly urgent, writes Kristian Ruby.
EU Commission taken to court over new emissions tests for vehicles
Environmental group ClientEarth has taken legal action against the European Commission's new rules for car emissions tests, which will allow manufacturers to keep their emissions control systems secret and, according to the group, could cause another Dieselgate-type scandal.
Transport sucks up nearly half of Europe’s fossil fuel subsidies, report finds
European countries spend more than €112 billion per year subsidising oil, gas and coal production or consumption – including tax breaks on highly-polluting diesel – despite a pledge to phase out fossil fuels completely by 2020.
Vestager doles out more truck cartel fines
Swedish truckmaker Scania was hit with an €880 million fine by the EU on Wednesday (27 September) for taking part in a 14-year price fixing cartel, boosting the total fine for the firms involved to a record €3.8 billion.
Bieńkowska: ‘What we want from Volkswagen is a different approach’
The car sector is keeping EU Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska busy. In an exclusive interview with EURACTIV, the Polish official spoke frankly about carmaker responsibility following the Dieselgate scandal, how to deal with Uber and how Brussels-Warsaw relations might not improve.
EU plan to cap fossil fuel subsidies will stymie renewables, power utilities warn
A European Commission proposal aimed at capping fossil fuel subsidies across the EU could have perverse effects by promoting investment in new gas-fired fossil fuel power instead of renewable energies, according to a new study.
Technology could help cut truck fuel bills by €5,700 a year, claims report
Trucks could be much more fuel efficient and save hauliers €5,700 a year if they used technology that is already available, according to a new report by sustainable transport group Transport & Environment (T&E) released on Tuesday (26 September).
Will new EU buildings law help pave the way for an electro-mobile future?
The ongoing reform of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) offers a once-in-a-decade opportunity to make European buildings and cities of today fit for the low pollution, electric transport of tomorrow, writes Teodora Serafimova.
EU auditors to assess anti-pollution efforts by testing Brussels air
The European Court of Auditors is to embark on a comprehensive review of the European Union’s efforts to curb air pollution, the main environmental cause of premature deaths in the EU.
Scrapping old cars and boilers: Hulot’s first measures for decarbonising France
The French minister for ecological transition and solidarity fleshes out four measures of his climate plan. EURACTIV’s partner Journal de l’Environnement reports.
Britain to end love affair with coal and cash in on health savings
Britain has announced the phase-out of coal-fired power plants by 2025, ending its 250-year-long love affair with coal, in a move welcomed by health practitioners
Scientists link ‘Dieselgate’ to 5,000 premature deaths per year in Europe
Emissions from diesel cars rigged to appear eco-friendly may be responsible for 5,000 extra deaths from air pollution per year in Europe alone, according to a new study published on Monday (18 September).
Green groups say Greece granting illegal permits to polluting plants
Environmental activists have accused Greece of violating an international convention by directly granting permits to its national energy company and making it impossible for anyone to launch a legal challenge against them.
Parliament adds forest ‘sinks’ to EU’s 2030 carbon budget
MEPs approved new rules on Wednesday (13 September) accounting for the "negative emissions" from forestry as part of the EU’s 2030 climate change policy, a move welcomed by conservationists but which scientists warn risks creating incentives to burn cheap biomass.
John Cooper: On fossil fuels, the European public is ‘a little bit misled’
A lot is at stake for the energy security of Europe if political correctness was to dictate imposing one technology against the other, John Cooper, Director General of FuelsEurope told EURACTIV.com.
Poland to treat coal addiction by embracing nuclear power
Poland's ongoing large-scale investment in three new coal-fired power plants may be the country's last fossil fuel venture, its energy minister said on Wednesday (6 September), indicating a possible energy shift in the EU's largest eastern member amid revived plans to embrace nuclear power.
German minister: Berlin needs to halve coal capacity by 2030 to meet Paris goals
Germany would have to shut 25 gigawatts (GW), half its current total coal-fired power station capacity, by 2030 to meet carbon-cutting targets it has committed to under the Paris Agreement, deputy economy minister Rainer Baake said on Tuesday (5 September).
Abandoned wells pump thousands of tonnes of ‘fugitive’ emissions into North Sea
Thousands of tonnes of methane could be leaking into the North Sea every year from disused offshore oil and gas wells, according to a new study.
We need an Indoor Air Quality Performance Certificate
Poor indoor air quality causes respiratory distress and leads to chronic illness such as asthma, allergy and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Merkel doubles funding to help German cities fight air pollution
Angela Merkel has pledged a further €500m to help German cities fight air pollution caused by diesel cars, as a scandal strangling the automobile industry threatened to engulf politicians at the height of an election campaign.
Green MEP: EU member states did not learn from VW scandal
The EU has failed in sanctioning car manufacturers following the Volkswagen scandal and this means that they did not learn their lesson, Green MEP Karima Delli told EURACTIV Greece in an interview.
Tougher car emission tests start in EU, welcomed by consumers
Tougher and more realistic emissions tests for cars and vans take effect in the EU on Friday (1 September), a measure welcomed by the auto industry and consumer groups, coming on the heels of the Dieselgate scandal that shook the bloc, particularly Germany.
Air pollution almost as bad for babies as smoking during pregnancy
Dirty air can lead to women giving birth to smaller babies, according to new research which also warns that exposure to air pollution during pregnancy rivals the damage done by smoking.
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