Document Actions
Published: 12 May 2010
Economic development in the Western Balkan
countries is putting additional strains
on the environment, affecting primarily
resource use, waste
and biodiversity. A new report by the European
Environment Agency (EEA) provides a detailed
analysis of the environmental pressures
and forces at play and urges policy-makers
to take action towards sustainable development.
The EEA report "Environmental
trends and perspectives in the Western Balkans:
future production and consumption patterns"
asserts that the outcomes of current trends
are not inevitable and implementing appropriate
policies could minimise their adverse effects
on the environment. To shape a sustainable
environmental future, all the actors in
the region need to cooperate with each other
and with the neighbouring countries to tackle
key challenges such as pollution and health
issues, climate change impacts and ecosystem
threats. Today’s choices will influence
not only the region’s environment in the
coming decades, but also that of other European
countries.
Consumption and production
trends and impacts
New consumption patterns and growth of consumerism,
facilitated by new supermarkets and processed
food products, are spreading quickly and
will increase environmental impacts related
to food.
Passenger and freight
transport grew by 40 % and 100 % respectively
in the period 2000 - 2007, in the case of
freight transport far faster than GDP. The
volume of air travel tripled in the same
period. These trends affect air pollution,
especially in urban areas, as well as greenhouse
gas emissions. Many private motor vehicles
in the region are old and highly polluting,
which increases pollution problems.
Urban areas have sprawled;
so has construction for tourism along the
coastlines. This is one of the main threats
to the region’s rich biodiversity.
The generation of municipal
waste has risen steadily in recent years.
It is currently estimated to be at levels
similar to those in the EU-12. Municipal
waste management is weak in many parts of
the region and many waste facilities are
old. Abandoned landfills, accumulated industrial
waste and mining waste, are also a serious
problem in some areas.
Agricultural land abandonment
has biodiversity impacts. At the same time,
agricultural production and fertiliser use
are increasing; indicating that farming
in the region has become more intensive.
Background
The Western Balkan countries (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina,
Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia) are all
EEA cooperating countries.
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Europe to exceed air
pollutant emission limits – NOx in particular
Document Actions
Published: 04 May 2010
In 2010, around half of the European Union's
Member States expect to miss one or more
of the legal limits set by the National
Emission Ceilings Directive. According to
recent data compiled by the European Environment
Agency (EEA), 11 countries expect to exceed
their ceilings by significant amounts —
some missing NOx targets by more than 40
%.
Of the four pollutants
covered by the NEC Directive, EU Member
States have the greatest difficulty meeting
the emission limits for nitrogen oxides
(NOx). Only 16 expect to achieve their respective
NOx ceilings, with road transport bearing
most of the blame. The road transport sector
contributed around 40 % of total EU-27 NOx
emissions in 2008 and although its overall
emissions have decreased since 11000, the
reduction has not always been as large as
originally anticipated. This is partly because
the sector has grown more than expected
and partly because vehicle emission standards
have not always delivered the foreseen level
of NOx reductions.
Several Member States,
including Slovenia, Sweden and the United
Kingdom, expect to exceed their respective
NOx ceilings by small margins (less than
5 %). In contrast, France and Spain expect
to exceed their ceilings by 261 kilotonnes
and 236 kilotonnes respectively — equivalent
to surpluses of 32 % and 28 %. Other countries,
expecting lower surpluses in absolute terms,
would exceed their limits by even larger
margins, notably Austria (42 %), Belgium
(43 %) and Ireland (47 %).
What does the NEC Directive
cover?
The EU NEC Directive sets pollutant-specific
and legally binding emission ceilings (limits)
for four main air pollutants: sulphur dioxide
(SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane
volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs) and
ammonia (NH3). These pollutants harm both
human health and the environment by contributing
to the formation of ozone and particulate
matter and leading to acidification and
eutrophication. Member States must meet
the NEC Directive’s ceilings by 2010 in
order to deliver the originally agreed health
and environmental benefits.
What next?
The Thematic Strategy on Air (TSAP) adopted
by the Commission in 2005 lists a revision
of the NEC Directive as an important action
to achieve the health and environmental
targets of the TSAP by 2020. This revision
is expected to propose stricter emission
ceilings for 2020 in order to protect health
and the environment further. It could also,
for the first time, introduce a ceiling
for fine particulate matter (PM2.5). In
the absence of new legislation, however,
the NEC Directive remains in force and requires
that future emissions stay below national
ceilings after 2010.
