Denounce the “inertia” of the State in the face of ecological emergencies. The Friends of the Earth association, associated with environmental and health defense collectives as well as doctors, are filing a request this Tuesday, October 2 before the Council of State. With this mobilization, they hope to force the State to act against the fine particles and nitrogen dioxide. They ask the Council of State for a fine on the government of 100,000 euros per day of delay for non-compliance with its obligations. “A derisory amount compared to the exorbitant cost of air pollution estimated at nearly 100 billion euros per year “, estimate Friends of the Earth in a statement. The 78 applicants plead for urgent measures against air pollution, the third cause of death in France after alcohol and tobacco.
The French State’s inaction against fine particle pollution
Last May, the European Commission launched an infringement procedure against France (among other countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom) referring the French state to the Court of Justice of the European Union for not -compliance with air quality standards. This call to order was not the first. Before the Commission, it was the Council of State, the highest French administrative court, which had stepped up to the plate.
July 12, 2017 the institution had asked the governmentEmmanuel Macron to “take all the necessary measures to bring the concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and fine particles (…) below the limit values defined by the environmental code”. The Wise Men had ordered the Prime Minister and the Minister responsible for the Environment “to take all the necessary measures for the development and implementation (…) of a plan relating to air quality making it possible to reduce concentrations “below their regulatory limits. Injunctions remained a dead letter, hence the current approach of the 78 associations.
“The government continues to ignore this court decision and is slow to take effective measures to improve air quality throughout the territory, deplore Les Amis de la Terre in a press release. Indeed, the roadmaps sent by the government to the European Commission do not present any urgent measures, despite the injunction which was made and while scientists, nursing staff and citizens multiply the alerts, in particular concerning the excessive concentrations of fine particles and nitrogen dioxide “.
The associations cite a few examples of green projects to be set up to fight against the scourge of pollution in France: “low emission zones in cities most exposed to pollution”, “ambitious financial support from the State to local authorities for their public transport projects and bicycle development “, and “the revival of rail freight in France on existing lines”.
Each year in France, 48,000 deaths are linked to fine particle pollution, according to the agency Public health France (2016 figure). Cities of all sizes as well as rural areas are affected by this health problem.
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