 | New directive of the European Union on air quality takes into account concerns from latest WHO air quality guidelines on fine particles | |
| June 2008 | ||
| Air quality guidelines. Global update 2005. Particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide (2005) | |
| WHO global air quality guidelines 2005 | |
| Summary of risk assessment | ||
| WHO challenges world to improve air quality | |
| Press release 5 October 2006 | ||
| WHO air quality guidelines for Europe, 2nd edition, 2000 | |
| From European to global | |
| The process to develop the 2005 air quality guidelines | ||
In its first global air quality guidelines, published in 2005, WHO challenges governments around the world to improve air quality in their cities to protect people's health and to follow dramatically lower standards for levels of pollutants.
The Guidelines inform about the elimination or reduction of those pollutants that are known or are likely to be hazardous to human health and wellbeing. They also provide a reference for setting national standards on air pollution by indicating pollutant levels below which lifetime exposure or exposure for a given averaging time does not constitute a health risk.
The Global update 2005 indicates that reducing levels of one particular type of pollutant (known as PM10) could decrease mortality in polluted cities by as much as 15% every year. It also substantially lowers the recommended limits of ozone and sulphur dioxide. These targets are far tougher than the national standards currently applied in many parts of the world and would mean in some cities reducing current pollution levels by more than three-fold.
The WHO air quality guidelines for Europe, first published in 1987, provided a basis to develop strategies for the control of air pollution, and contributed to protect and improve public health from the adverse effects of air pollutants.
