Which Countries Are Europe's Worst for Nitrogen Dioxide?

New figures released by the European Environment Agency (EEA) explain which European countries have the worst levels of the harmful contaminant nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in their atmosphere – and the results don’t make easy reading for the UK government or its citizens.

According to the report, only Italy has more premature deaths directly attributable to NO2 poisoning than the UK, where 11,940 Britons succumb to the contaminant every year.

Second in an unpleasant league table

The data was compiled from an abundance of mobile monitoring stations across Europe, which measured amounts of NO2 among other pollutants. The heightened levels of pollution found in Italy and the UK are believed to be caused by the high numbers of diesel cars in these countries. Over the last decade or so, the UK government has supported the diesel automotive industry, on account of the fact that diesel engines emit less carbon dioxide than their petrol counterparts. However, the emergence of news that diesel produces significantly more of other types of contaminants – including NO2 – has spelled bad news for the industry and for UK air quality in general.

Though Italy and Britain share a similar proportion of diesel vehicles on their roads, the Italian air quality situation is exacerbated by the location of several industrial plants within urban areas.

While the British figure of 11,940 deaths per year is down from the 14,100 recorded four years ago, it’s still unacceptable for a fully-developed country that is supposedly at the forefront of environmental practices.

Home to the worst NO2 hotspot in Europe

As well as being second in the table of overall deaths, the UK is also home to the area which has recorded higher levels of NO2 than anywhere else in the continent. Marylebone Road in London currently endures annual concentrations of more than 90µg/m3 of the contaminant, which is over double the level recommended as “safe” by the World Health Organisaton (WHO).

Interestingly, four of the top ten worst hotspots for NO2 were recorded within the city limits of Paris, with two more located inside Stuttgart. The other three areas were found in various other French and German cities.

Of course, though the problem is a concerning one, European levels of nitrogen oxides (NOx) pale in comparison to Asian megacities such as New Delhi. However, the UK is still in an unenviable position when compared to its European neighbours.

What the critics say

Many environmentalists and lobbyists have used the announcement to demand that the UK government take action immediately. James Thornton, CEO of the environmental law firm ClientEarth (which has successfully taken the UK government to court on several occasions) was vocal in his criticism:

“Today’s EEA report puts the UK in an unwanted position near the top of the table when it comes to premature deaths from exposure to NO2 pollution. The UK government should be ashamed of these figures and must act now to protect the health of people in this country.”

Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat MEP Catherine Bearder attacked the Tories’ decision to green light a third runway at Heathrow airport, despite the pollution nightmare it would entail.

“If I had become a doctor instead of a politician I would be prescribing a serious health warning to the UK government today,” she said. “The UK government have approved a third runway at Heathrow airport even though they know that air pollution around the airport is already dangerously above legal levels of nitrogen dioxide.”