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EU air pollution policy

Until the early nineties, EU policy regarding air pollution had tended to be fragmented. Such directives as existed were either those setting air-quality standards for a few selected air pollutants, or others to control emissions from certain defined sources, such as large power plants and road vehicles.

Some first steps towards a more clearly aimed and strategic policy could be seen in the fifth environmental action programme, which was presented in 1992. Also dating from 1992 was the auto-oil programme, which aimed to set new environmental requirements for road vehicles (cars, trucks and buses) and motor fuels.

During the second half of the 1990s the Commission also presented strategies for combating acidification and ground-level ozone within the EU. The two laid the foundation for the NEC directive (see link in the left-hand column).

The EU acidification strategy came to involve a revision and tightening of two important directives: the first for controlling the sulphur content of liquid fuels and the second for emissions from large combustion plants (LCP directive).

The more strategically oriented work on air quality that was initiated in the nineties has been followed up by the Clean Air For Europe Programme (CAFE), see link in the left-hand column.

In the case of products that can travel across national borders, such as vehicles and fuels, the EU requirements are usually harmonization requirements, i.e. the same requirements must apply in all member countries. Stationary installations (e.g. combustion plants) and air quality standards are instead covered by minimum requirements, i.e. each member country is free to set stricter national requirements if it wishes.

Most EU decisions on environmental issues are reached by means of a co-decision procedure, which means that the European Parliament has an equal say in the matter as the Council of Ministers. As a result the decision-making process can be fairly long-winded - it often takes two years between a proposal from the Commission and the final decision being taken by the Council of Ministers.