BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - The European Environment Agency has published its five-yearly State of Europe's environment report showing that significant progress has been made over the last five years in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.
However, more efforts are necessary as climate change and environmental degradation pose major risks to Europe's economic prosperity and competitiveness, security and quality of life, the European Commission said in a press release. As highlighted in the EEA report, Europe's water resources are under severe pressure. Water stress currently affects 30 percent of Europe's territory and 34 percent of the population. Therefore, implementation of EU policies and objectives as well as rethinking the links between European economy and the environment are crucial to ensure a healthy society and competitive economy, it adds.
The EEA science-based report underlines EU's climate leadership with the continued reduction of its GHG emissions and fossil fuel use while remarkably increasing the share of renewables and enhancing energy efficiency. The report shows that the EU has successfully cut its domestic greenhouse gas emissions by 37 percent since 1990. Good progresses were made among others in areas such as air quality, waste recycling, innovation, green employment and sustainable finance. The EEA report cites as an example that EU policies to improve air quality have saved lives, with a 45 percent reduction in premature deaths attributable to fine particulate matter from 2005 to 2022.
Following the analysis of data from 38 countries, the report gives a clear call to action to continue restoring Europe's nature, protecting biodiversity and cutting pollution as the overall state of Europe's environment needs further improvement.
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