Pollution

Air quality: doctors sound the alarm over environmental health risks

Seventeen scientific and medical societies are calling on the Government to transpose the EU Directive by December without seeking a possible extension

by Paolo Castiglia

1 September 2026

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2' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

2' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

In Italia, around 70,000 deaths a year are attributable to exposure to air pollution; in Europe, the figure is 300,000. This is why the medical and scientific communities have taken direct action by writing a letter to the Government, sounding the alarm about the environmental risks to health.

The new European directive

Seventeen Italian scientific societies and medical associations have sent a joint letter to the Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, and – for information, to the Minister for Health, Orazio Schillaci, and to the Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni – in which they call on the Government to transpose the new European Directive 2024/2881 on ambient air quality within the prescribed timeframe and not to make use of the derogation options provided for under European legislation.

The Directive, which must be transposed by 11 December 2026, introduces stricter limit values for the main air pollutants, gradually bringing European standards into line with the World Health Organisation’s guidelines.

The risks associated with pollution

For the signatory organisations, this is first and foremost a matter of public health and prevention. Air pollution is, in fact, the main environmental risk to health in Europe, accounting for over 300,000 deaths each year. Italia, as mentioned, is one of the countries most affected, with an estimated 70,000 deaths per year due to exposure to air pollution.

“The new European directive represents a crucial step towards protecting public health. Requesting exemptions or delaying compliance with the new standards would mean prolonging the exposure of millions of people to a risk factor that we know is preventable,” says Roberto Romizi, president of ISDE Italia, the Association of Doctors for the Environment.

“The scientific evidence is now unequivocal: air pollution contributes to the development and worsening of cardiovascular, respiratory, metabolic and oncological conditions,” Romizi goes on to explain, “and it particularly affects children, the elderly and people with chronic conditions. Rapidly reducing pollutant concentrations is therefore not merely an environmental objective, but one of the most important public health prevention measures we can implement.”

The ‘Cambiamo aria’ project

“With the ‘Cambiamo aria’ project,” concludes the ISDE president, “we are closely monitoring what is happening in Italian cities, and the data show just how much work still remains to be done. That is why we are calling on the Government to fully transpose the European directive, without any exemptions, and to back it up with coherent policies and adequate resources. Every year gained in improving air quality means fewer illnesses and premature deaths.”

It must be said that, for the signatory organisations, the transposition of the new European directive should not be viewed merely as a matter of regulatory or environmental compliance: improving air quality means preventing avoidable illnesses and deaths and effectively safeguarding public health.

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