Qualitat de l’aire: el PE vota a favor de la indústria i en contra de la salut de les persones
La contaminació de l’aire provoca anualment 350.000 morts prematures a la UE i un increment del 9% del cost sanitari anual. És per això que la votació d’aquest matí al Parlament Europeu sobre l’informe Krahmer relatiu a la Directiva de qualitat de l’aire (primera lectura), només es pot titllar d’irresponsable. I és que, un cop més, cal lamentar que el Parlament Europeu hagi estat pres pels interessos del lobby proindustria i hagi votat majoritàriament contra la salut de les persones. La UE, que normalment s’erigeix en líder a escala mundial en qüestions medioambientals, té darrerament tendència a adormir-se i deixa que la seva política, moltes vegades exemplar, s’afebleixi a mans de la majoria conservadora del Parlament Europeu que s’ampara sovint amb la via/trampa de la simplificació legislativa. (segueix…)
Ara tot resta en mans del Consell, i per tant dels governs dels Estats membres. La reunió del Consell de Medi Ambient del 23 d’octubre és l’etapa següent. Caldrà, per tant, treballar no només a nivell de Congrés sin també dels governs de les Comunitats Autònomes (CCAA), en la mesura que hi tenen competències i possibilitat d’incidir en la postura que el govern ha de defensar davant el Consell. Posteriorment, el tema tornarà al Parlament Europeu per a fer-ne la segona lectura.
A tots/es aquells/es que encara critiquen el poc pes i interès del Parlament Europeu els voldria demanar que parin atenció a la votació d’avui, ja que suposa un exemple més, entre molts d’altres, sobre com determinats sectors s’aprofiten de l’aparent discreció que acompanya la feina europarlamentària per tal d’anar capgirant polítiques europees claus que després els governs, ja siguin estatals o regionals, hauran d’implementar.
Adjunto també la nota de premsa que ha fet la nostra companya de grup Satu Hassi, vice-presidenta de la Comissió de Medi Ambient al Parlament Europeu:
Greens fume at EP vote to weaken EU air pollution rules
Following the vote by the European Parliament on the Air Quality Directive (1) in plenary today, Finnish Green MEP and vice-chair of the Environment Committee Satu Hassi said:
"It is a scandal that the Parliament has voted to weaken the existing air quality rules in Europe despite clear evidence of the severe health consequences of air pollution. With estimates suggesting that the health damage caused by air pollution is responsible for more than 350,000 premature deaths in Europe each year, resulting in health costs of up to 9% of EU25 GDP, it seems almost unthinkable that the current rules would be relaxed but that is exactly the situation we are facing. Even the Council recommended a more limited delay for meeting the air pollution limits than
"As it stands, the pollution limits in the proposed revision fall far short of the limit values recommended by the World Health Organisation for the key pollutant PM10 (particulate matter 10). Worse still, the EP has recommended almost doubling the amount of days a year on which Member States will be allowed to exceed these limit values from 2010 (2). For the pollutant PM2.5, Californian and even US federal air quality rules require limit values that are almost twice as strict as those being recommended by the EP (3).
"On top of this the EP has agreed to give Member States 6 years to meet the current air pollution limits, where even the Council agreed that 3 years is sufficient (4)."
"It is now up to Council to ensure that this revision is not merely an exercise in watering down the existing rules. If this proves to be the case, the Commission must withdraw its proposal. We cannot accept weaker rules, which would lead to an exacerbation of the already significant health problems caused by air pollution in Europe."
Editors notes:
(1) The report (Krahmer) on revising current air quality legislation was adopted by the European Parliament today, Tuesday.
(2) The WHO has recommended a daily limit value of 50µg of PM10 with 3 days on which this can be exceeded, with an annual limit of 20µg. Under a compromise amendment adopted by the EP, EU rules would allow for the limit to be exceeded on 55 days each year and set an annual limit of 33µg.
(3) California air quality laws require a PM2.5 limit value of 12µg by 2003, while the EP compromise on PM2.5 would set a limit value of 20µg only by 2015.
(4) The Environment Council agreed in June that Member States should be given three years after the entry into force of the Directive to meet the current limits, while the EP has given Member States four years plus a possible extra two years.
Font foto: BBC