Environment commissioner Janez Potočnik announces that the review of air quality policy is one of the EU’s key environmental initiatives for 2013 and 2014

The EU’s review of its air quality policy is one of four key environmental initiatives for the European Commission in 2013 and 2014, environment commissioner Janez Potočnik has announced.

In front of various national legislators in Europe as part of the EU Committee for European Affairs and the Committee for Sustainable Development in Paris on Wednesday March 3, Mr Potočnik outlined Europe’s environmental priorities for the next two years.

Janez Potočnik was speaking in Paris this weekOne of these priorities is the EU’s ‘Year of Air’ in 2013, which will see a report on European air quality policy issued in September 2013 following a public consultation earlier this year.Mr Potočnik emphasised that tackling air pollution in Europe through improved legislation was key to economic growth as well as improving the health of European citizens.“In Europe, each year, 400,000 people die prematurely because of air pollution,” he said. “This situation needs to change. One should not forget that air pollution also affects businesses and public budgets due to lost working days as well as the cost of health care on pollution-related diseases.”

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