UTES

Ground-level ozone is among the most harmful air pollutants in Europe today. Elevated ozone levels cause health problems, premature deaths, reduced agricultural crop yields, damage to plants in semi-natural ecosystems and corrosion of physical infrastructure and cultural heritage. Troublingly, efforts to combat European ozone levels are achieving only limited success. Although Europe has steadily reduced emissions of the air pollutants that lead to ozone formation in recent decades, ozone levels remain largely unchanged in many countries. A new report by the European Environment Agency (EEA), released today, explores the reasons for this apparent contradiction, using data from the European air quality database, AirBase, and computer models to investigate ground-level ozone formation in Europe. EEA technical report:

• http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/assessment-of-ground-level-ozone-in-eea-member-countries-with-a-focus-on-long-term-trends/at_download/file