Zero emissions in the EU by 2030. – latest reports from the EC and EEA

The European Commission and the European Environment Agency (EEA) have released their second report on monitoring and prospects for zero emissions. It includes an overview of the EU’s work toward the 2030 target and the fourth Clean Air Outlook report. The summaries show that EU policies have helped reduce air pollution, pesticide use and marine plastic waste generation, but pollution levels are still too high, particularly due to harmful noise, the release of plastic microbeads into the environment, nutrient pollution and waste generation.

Reports assessing EU progress toward 2030 goals.

Progress on the six zero-emission targets remains mixed. Pollution from marine waste, pesticides and antimicrobials is declining, according to the Zero Emission Monitoring and Prospects report. Air quality has also improved across Europe, thanks to regulatory changes and emission reductions, leading to a significant drop in premature deaths. However, persistent pollution, particularly from ammonia and nitrogen oxides, continues to threaten EU ecosystems. This is borne out by the fourth Clean Air Outlook report, which emphasizes that while EU emissions continue to fall, air quality poses a serious threat to health and ecosystems in the EU. Both documents show that further action is needed to reduce air pollution.

The report on monitoring and prospects for eliminating pollution also found that levels of harmful noise, microplastics and waste, and nutrient losses remain too high. As for noise pollution, more efforts should be made, especially in urban areas, to reduce the number of people exposed to it. As for plastic microplastics, more efforts are needed to eliminate their sources. Nutrient losses have remained largely unchanged, particularly due to the ongoing challenges of runoff from agricultural fields and fertilizer use. Increased efforts on waste management are needed as waste production in the EU continues to grow. The report clearly shows that further work is needed to achieve the EU’s zero emissions target.

The reports prepared are further documents showing the EU’s commitment to the 2030 goals. We also wrote about these activities in a previous article: Progress Report on Climate Action 2024.

Impact of water pollution on human health – report

Access to clean water is essential for basic needs such as drinking, food preparation, hygiene and sanitation. Contamination of water by chemicals, bacteria or nutrients poses a direct threat to health.

According to a report prepared on monitoring and prospects for zero pollution in 2023. 85 percent of bathing waters in the EU were rated as excellent, and 96 percent met minimum water quality standards. In addition, as the chart below shows, the percentage of the EU population connected to at least secondary wastewater treatment reached in 2022. 81 percent.

At the same time, in terms of assessing freshwater pollution, according to the report, it is worth adding that more than 75 percent of groundwater bodies and only 29 percent of surface waters in the EU have reached good chemical status by 2021. In recent decades, many efforts have been made to reduce pollution from point, diffuse sources.

Levels of air emissions and air quality – current situation

According to the fourth Clean Air Outlook report, its pollution in the EU has decreased over the past decades as a result of EU legislation and concerted action taken by the EU and national, regional and local authorities. Emissions of five major pollutants have fallen significantly between 2005 and 2024, yet air quality remains a serious threat to the health of European citizens, especially in urban areas.

The information presented is best summarized in the chart below, which shows a decrease in emissions of major air pollutants: _SO2 emissions have decreased by more than 80 percent, NOx by 50 percent, and NMVOCs and PM 2.5 by more than 30 percent. The problem remains ammonia (_NH3) emissions, more than 90 percent of which are generated by the agricultural sector. Reduction of these pollutants remains alarmingly low and in some member states even ineffective.

Zero emission rate table

The prepared reports are accompanied by the first pollution elimination dashboard, which shows the progress made by EU regions and all capitals on the way to cleaner air, water and soil. The dashboard compares regions with each other and with the EU average on several pollution indicators that relate to health, protection of ecosystems and biodiversity, as well as production and consumption.

Fifteen regions in Austria, Finland, France, Germany and Sweden currently have the lowest pollution levels.