On Tuesday, the European Commission launched an open public consultation on the evaluation of the National Emission Reduction Directive (NEC). Citizens and stakeholders are invited to give their views on the NEC guidelines through an online consultation that is up to November 26, 2024.
The evaluation of the NEC Directive assesses whether it effectively contributes to its goals—protecting human health and the environment by reducing national emissions of five major air pollutants, namely fine particulate matter (PM).2.5Nitrogen oxides (NOxNon-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs), ammonia (NH3and sulfur dioxide (SO2).
One of the key objectives will be to assess the relevance of this directive in light of evolving conditions, especially scientific and technical progress and the implementation of other EU climate and energy policies. This evaluation will also help to clarify any obstacles in the implementation of the directive and explore the potential for simplification and reduction of regulatory costs.
The evaluation will also include a targeted stakeholder consultation that will gather the views of an expert audience on specific questions and a one-day stakeholder workshop, announced as a combined event for 14 October 2024 in Brussels. The Commission has commissioned a dedicated study to support a public and targeted stakeholder assessment and consultation.
Background
Air pollution is the largest environmental cause of premature mortality, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory disease, and is one of the main causes of biodiversity loss. The European Union has been dealing with air pollution since the 1970s and has developed various tools to improve air quality and protect ecosystems.
The NEC Directive establishes national commitments to reduce emissions of five air pollutants (SO2, NOx, NMVOC, NH3 and PM2.5) for the period 2020-2029, and more ambitious reduction commitments for 2030 and beyond. This includes reporting (mandatory and voluntary) emissions of more pollutants, without requiring them to decrease over time.
Article 13(1) of the NEC Directive requires the European Commission to review the Directive by 31 December 2025 at the latest.
According to the NEC directive, EU member states are obliged to:
- Develop and regularly update national air pollution control plans, including policies and measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Make a list of air pollutant emissions in each sector
- Generate emissions forecasts with estimates of the future evolution of emissions
- Preparation of emission inventory with spatial resolution information and large point sources (such as power plants)
- Monitoring the impact of air pollution on the ecosystem
The second report on the implementation of the NEC Directive, published by the Commission in July 2024, found that overall compliance by Member States with national reduction commitments for all pollutants except ammonia emissions is relatively good.
The NEC Directive is one of the three pillars of the European Union’s clean air policy, complementing the Ambient Air Quality Directives (2008/50/EC and Directive 2004/107/EC) and emission standards for key sources of air pollution. It also implements the UNECE Gutenberg Protocol to reduce transboundary air pollution, to which all EU member states and the EU itself are signatories.
The Zero Pollution 2021 action plan sets EU-wide targets for 2030 (compared to 2005) to reduce the number of premature deaths from air pollution by 55% and to reduce the number of EU ecosystems by 25%. It determines that air pollution threatens biodiversity. .