As part of the European Topic Centre on Human Health and the Environment (ETC HE), 4sfera has contributed to the preparation of two key Air Quality Status Reports:
- ETC HE Report 2025/1: Status report of air quality in Europe for the year 2024, using validated and up-to-date data.
- ETC HE Report 2025/2: Status report of air quality in Europe for the year 2023, using validated data.
Both reports provide a thorough analysis of air quality across Europe and support the ongoing efforts to improve environmental health in line with European policies.
The challenge
Air pollution remains the leading environmental health risk in Europe, contributing to various diseases and premature deaths. Despite improvements, EU air quality standards continue to be exceeded in many areas. In 2024, the EU Air Quality Directive 2024/2881 entered into force, introducing stricter pollutant value limits. The challenge was to evaluate air quality data for 2023 and 2024, comparing the levels of pollutants against the current limits of the EU Air Quality Directives (2008/50/EC and 2004/107/EC), the WHO air quality guidelines, and the new EU Air Quality Directive 2024/2881.
The solution
4sfera, in collaboration with the EEA and NILU, produced two separate Air Quality Status Reports:
- ETC HE Report 2025/1: This report presents the analysis of air quality in 2024 using validated and up-to-date (UTD) data.
- ETC HE Report 2025/2: This report evaluates air quality in 2023 using validated data.
Key elements of the solution include:
- Analysing air quality data for both 2023 and 2024 against the current EU directives (2008/50/EC and 2004/107/EC), the WHO guidelines, and the new EU directive.
- Mapping pollutant concentrations (e.g., PM2.5, PM10, NO2, O3, BaP) and identifying the most harmful pollutants.
The result
The Air Quality Status Reports provide a comprehensive overview of air quality in Europe. Both reports are crucial resources for policymakers, environmental agencies, and public health experts. By assessing air quality relative to the updated EU directives and the WHO guidelines, as well as the new EU directive, the reports contribute to efforts aimed at improving air quality and public health across Europe.