Published : Jan 31,
2013 Last modified : Feb 01, 2013 03:10
PM
Ozone pollution still exceeded target levels
in Europe during summer 2012, but the number
of exceedances of the alert threshold was
lower than in any year since monitoring
started in 1997. However, almost all EU
Member States failed to keep levels of the
pollutant within targets set to protect
human health.
The
information comes from a European Environment
Agency (EEA) report on ground-level ozone
levels in summer 2012. The pollutant can
cause respiratory problems and other severe
illnesses, also damaging crops and the wider
environment. A new report published today
by the World Health Organization suggests
that ozone exposure may be more harmful
than previously thought.
During summer 2012, the percentage of sites
exceeding the ‘alert threshold’ was the
lowest on record, indicating peak episodes
were shorter and maximum ozone concentrations
were lower. Nonetheless, the ‘long-term
objective’ (LTO) to protect human health
was exceeded in all EU Member States apart
from Estonia, and it is likely many of them
will not meet other targets phased in recently.
The lower levels seen during the summer
last year were in part due to weather conditions.
Ground-level ozone production depends on
weather conditions such as sunshine and
temperature, and is a result of chemical
reactions between other pollutants in the
air. These substances are emitted by industry,
traffic, farming practices and from other
sources.
Ozone pollution can travel great distances,
meaning that it is both a local air quality
issue and also a global, cross-border problem.
This edition of the European Environment
Agency (EEA) annual report on summer ozone
levels covers the period from April to September
2012. It is based on data from 2 107 monitoring
sites across Europe.
Main findings
Monitoring stations report when the ‘information
threshold’ is exceeded. This is a one-hour
average ozone concentration of 180 µg/m3.
During summer 2012, the information threshold
was exceeded at approximately 28 % of all
operational stations, one of the lowest
percentages since 1997.
The ‘alert threshold’, a one-hour average
ozone concentration of 240 µg/m3 was
exceeded on 25 occasions – the lowest number
on record. This occurred in only seven EU
Member States (Belgium, France, Germany,
Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain).
As in previous years, the LTO for the protection
of human health (maximum daily eight-hour
mean concentration of 120 µg/m3) was
exceeded in all EU Member States except
Estonia. This level was exceeded at least
once at approximately 85 % of all operational
stations.
The EU also has a target for protecting
human health, stating that the LTO should
not be exceeded on more than 25 days per
year. This threshold was exceeded in 17
EU Member States (Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus,
the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece,
Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland,
Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and
Spain) and five other countries submitting
data to the EEA (Albania, Croatia, the former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and
Switzerland). As in previous years, the
most widespread concentrations occurred
in the Mediterranean area.
