The International Law Review Association: Online Forum
Abstract
Communities around the world face health risks due to air pollution. These health risks can include asthma, cognitive impairment, and even death. But these negative health effects are not equally spread among communities. Studies have established that air pollution affects socially disadvantaged areas more. The correlation between socioeconomic levels and increased risk of environmental harm is referred to as environmental inequality. The World Health Organization has found that environmental health inequality occurs in every European Union (EU) member country. The EU has implemented multiple pieces of legislation to reduce air pollution, including Directive 2008/50/EC, which sets specific air quality that establish concentration limits for air pollutants. If a member country exceeds a value limit for a pollutant, the European Commission can initiate infringement proceedings against that country. The Court of Justice for the European Union then steps in and uses its enforcement power against the country to bring it in line with EU law. The Court has had to use this enforcement power against multiple offenders, including Spain, Germany, and France. Although the Commission has taken multiple member states to court over their exceedance of air quality standards, the Court has not yet imposed financial penalties on the offending country. This paper argues that the current EU air pollution legislation does not effectively reduce the environmental health inequality among the member countries. Moreover, this paper encourages the EU Council and Parliament to pass a new air quality directive based on a recent European Commission proposal that directly addresses environmental health inequality. And the EU should cooperate with other countries to eliminate sources of pollution.
Recommended Citation
Bonnie Nolan,
Comment,
Clean Air for All? An Analysis of EU Air Pollution Legislation and Health Inequality,
ILRA Student Forum
(2023)
