MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Air quality in Italy – E-000385/2025(ASW)

The Commission monitors closely the implementation of the Ambient Air Quality Directives[1]. Since 2005, the estimated number of premature deaths attributable to exposure to fine particulate matter in Italy has reduced significantly[2], also thanks to the Commission’s enforcement action, but significant implementation gaps remain across Italy.

Two rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union established that Italy breached Directive 2008 /50/EC because of systematic exceedances of the limit values for Particulate Matter ( PM₁₀) and Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and because it did not adopt appropriate measures to keep the exceedance period as short as possible.

Progress is being closely monitored by the Commission in the framework of the annual reporting on ambient air quality and through periodic meetings with the Italian authorities.

Given that the breaches of Directive 2008/50/EC found by the Court in Case C-644/18[3] as regards PM₁₀ persist, the Commission issued a letter of formal notice to Italy pursuant to Article 260 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union on 13 March 2024.

The Commission is currently assessing Italy’s replies to that letter as well as the actions taken by the Italian authorities to execute the Court’s judgment in Case C-573/19[4] as regards NO₂.

Additionally, it is assessing Italy’s replies to the letter of formal notice issued in 2020[5] as regards the exceedances of PM_2.5.

• [1] Directive 2004/107/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 2004 relating to arsenic, cadmium, mercury, nickel and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air, OJ L 23, 26.1.2005, p. 3-16; Directive 2008/50/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2008 on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe, OJ L 152, 11.6.2008, p. 1-44.
• [2] https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/indicators/health-impacts-of-exposure-to
• [3] Judgment of the Court of 10 November 2020 — European Commission v Italian Republic (Case C-644/18), https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:62018CJ0644
• [4] Judgment of the Court of 12 May 2022 — European Commission v Italian Republic (Case C-573/19), https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:62019CA0573
• [5] INFR(2020)2299,  https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/EN/INF_20_1687