European Directives

The framework Directive 96/62 on ambient air quality assessment and management.

The framework Council Directive 96/62/EC of 27 September 1996 , on ambient air quality assessment and management has been published on  21/11/96. This Directive defines a global frame with which the European Union expects in the future, not only to assess (measurements and interpretations) air quality but also to manage it (preserve air quality where it is good and improve it where it is bad). The new framework Directive will replace existing Directives for sulphur dioxide and suspended particulates (80/779/EEC), for lead (82/884/EEC), for nitrogen dioxide (85/203/EEC) and for ozone (92/72/EEC). The framework Directive will, together with daughter Directives, propose new quality objectives in the European Union. Daughter Directives propose norms for 13 pollutants (limit values and a set of alarm thresholds). The aim of this Directives is to define the basic principles of a common strategy to  :

• défine and establish objectives for ambient air quality in the Community designed to avoid, prevent and reduce harmful effects on human health and the environment as a whole,

• assess the ambient air quality in Member States on the basis of common methods and criteria,
• obtain adequate information on ambient air quality and ensure that it is made available to the public, inter alia by means of alert thresholds,
• maintain ambient air quality where it is good and improve it in other cases.

The European Union intends to reach those goals by using the following strategy :

• Procedures and criteria are proposed in the Directive in order to reach the quality objectives  (limit values for most pollutants, except ozone for which guide values will be proposed) in ambient air.
• Quality objectives have been formulated in daughter Directives. A deadline is set at which the limit values have to be attained. A tolerance margin applicable to the limit values can be used during the intermediate phase.
• Methods are proposed in the daughter Directives about the survey of air quality (measurements and/or modelling techniques, as a function of the concentration levels and population density - minimal number of measuring points as a function of the environment).
• Member States shall draw up action plans whenever air quality objectives are exceeded (measures to be taken may not lead to any pollution increase in other area and may not lead to adverse effects in the workplace).
• The nature of the information to be transmitted to the European Union is described.

The Council framework Directive gives a list of 13 pollutants that have to be surveyed. For the 6 first pollutants of the list : sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, fine particulate matter such as soot (incuding PM10), suspended particulate matter and lead, European Directives are momentarily still applied. As for the other pollutants : ozone, benzene, carbon monoxide, poly-aromatic hydrocarbons, cadmium, arsenic, nickel en mercury, there is no European legislation at the present time.

The 1999/30/EC Directive for SO₂, NO₂, PM10 and Lead.

The Council daughter Directive 1999/30/EC of 22 april 1999 relating to limit values for sulphur dioxide, nitrogen  dioxide, particulate matter and lead has been published on june,29 1999.

Limit values for sulphur dioxide

^* into force since 01/01/2005 
^** in rural area : 2 years after the entry into force of the Directive, stations should have a representativeness of  1000 km².

Alarm threshold : 500 µg/m³ during 3 consecutive hours.

Limit values for nitrogen oxides

^* into force since 01/01/2010
^**for background rural stations : 2 years after the entry into force of the Directive, stations should have a representativeness of  1000 km²

Alarm threshold : 400 µg/m³ during 3 consecutive hours.

Limit values for fine particulate matter (PM10)

^* into force since 01/01/2005
^** into force since 01/01/2010; indicative limit value to be reviewed in the light of further information on health and environment effects, technical feasibility and experience in the application of Stage 1 limit values in Member States.

Limit values for lead

^*into force since 01/01/2005. In area with an historical past of pollution (within a max. distance max. of 1000 m outside the industrial plant) a derogation can be obtained until  01/01/2010.