Air pollution by industries and households

This article analyses the emissions of five acidifying gases and ozone precursors in the European Union (EU) in a breakdown by industries and households that are responsible for their generation. It briefly explains the differences between data on emissions of air pollutants reported under the Regulation (EU) Nr 691/2011 on European environmental economic accounts, and the data reported under the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP).

The emissions of air pollutants with an acidifying potential (sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and ammonia (NH3)) decreased by 32 % between 2000 and 2011. This represents a reduction of SO2, NOx and NH3 of 9.4 million tonnes of SO2 equivalents. In 2011, emissions of nitrogen oxides accounted for the highest share of the acidifying potential (39 %) followed by ammonia (35 %) and sulphur dioxide (26 %).

The emissions of air pollutants with a tropospheric ozone formation potential (TOFP, including nitrogen oxides (NOx), methane (CH4), carbon monoxide (CO) and non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC)) fell by 32 % between 2000 and 2011. The main pollutants contributing to the tropospheric ozone formation potential in 2011 were NOx and NMVOC with 57 % and 31 % respectively.

See full Press Release: http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Air_pollution_by_industries_and_households