In 41 European countries, 534,471 premature deaths in 2014 can be linked to air pollution, the

European Environment Agency (EEA) reported. Within the 28 countries of the European
Union, that figure is 502,351.
Germany saw the highest number of deaths attributable to all air pollution sources, at 80,767.
It was followed by the United Kingdom (64,351) and France (63,798). These are also the
most populated countries in Europe.
"As a society, we should not accept the cost of air pollution," EEA Executive director Hans
Bruyninckx said in a statement.
Transport, agriculture, power plants, industry and households are the biggest emitters in
Europe, the agency said.
Investing in cleaner transport, energy and agriculture can help , Bruyninckx continued.
Despite these deaths, air quality in Europe has gradually improved, the EEA also pointed out.
The EEA based its numbers on measurements of fine particulate matter (PM 2.5), nitrogen
dioxide (NO2) and smog (O3).
According to the report, fine particulate matter alone accounted for around 428,000 of these
premature deaths in all of Europe (399,000 in the EU).
Particulate matter is largely generated by vehicular traffic, but also comes from agriculture,
energy production, industry and heating.
NO2 is a pollutant that can primarily be traced back to diesel fuel combustion have struggled
with nitrogen dioxide emissions repeatedly exceeding permitted limits.
Ground-level smog or ozone (O3) is produced when sunlight reacts with nitrogen oxides and a
volatile organic compound in the atmosphere. Nitrogen oxides (NOx) come from car exhaust,
coal power plants, and factory emissions.
NOx, which also include nitrogen dioxide, are the pollutants at the center of the, where
numerous automakers were shown to have manipulated sensors to indicate fewer emissions in
testing than cars actually produced on the road.
"The European Commission is committed to tackling this and help member states make sure
that the quality of their citizens' air is of the highest standard," Karmenu Vella, EU
commissioner for the environment, said in a statement.
Jrgen Resch, head of Environmental Action Germany (Deutsche Umwelthilfe), pointed the
finger at the auto industry and politicians - including German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
"The frightfully high proportion of premature deaths through poisonous diesel emissions is a
result of the criminal practice of auto manufacturers," Resch said in a statement, referring to
Dieselgate.
Environmental Action Germany reiterated its call for a
The EEA report also placed special emphasis on greenhouse gases, pointing out that agriculture
is a major source of this and other air pollutants.
The figures were released Wednesday in the
United States President Donald , widely recognized as former President Barack Obama's
linchpin legislation for reducing national greenhouse gas emissions.
The Clean Power Plan was intended as the key piece of policy that would have allowed the US
to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees
Celsius.
"This proposal completely dismisses how US emissions contribute to global climate impacts,"
commented Sam Adams, director of the World Resources Institute in the US, following the
Trump administration's announcement.
"Following the now is not the time to be backsliding on the country's obligation to reduce the
risks of climate change," Adams added.
Trump's gutting of the Clean Power Plan is not unexpected - and barely news for those who
have been following Trump's reversal of environmental standards in general, and in particular.
In an found that emission reduction pledges by US states, cities and businesses currently allow
the US to meet half of its nationally determined contribution under the Paris Agreement.
State, cities and business efforts will reduce emissions 12 to 14 percent below 2005 levels by
2025.
The report analyzed 342 commitments by 22 US states, 54 American cities and 250 businesses
headquartered in the US.
States are crucial to climate protection efforts due to the large scale of changes they can make.
Cities, it found, were more ambitious - they play a crucial role in implementing greenhouse gas
emission reductions.
But businesses made the most ambitious greenhouse gas reduction commitments of all.