Europe air quality improves but falls short of 2030 targets, European Environment Agency warns

Air quality in Europe is improving but further action is needed to meet the European Union’s 2030 targets, the European Environment Agency said on Thursday, noting pollution still exceeds limits at up to 20% of monitoring stations across 39 countries.

Issued on: 30/04/2026 - 01:21

Modified: 30/04/2026 - 07:56

Air quality in Europe is improving but more effort is needed to reach the European Union's 2030 targets, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said in its annual report on Thursday.

"EU standards were mostly met in most regions across Europe for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and for nitrogen dioxide (NO2)," the EEA said in a statement.