Share of EU urban population exposed to high levels air pollution 2016-2018
During the period of 2016 to 2018, large amounts of the European Union's urban population were exposed to high levels of air pollution. Approximately eight percent of the EU urban population was exposed to PM2.5 concentrations above EU limits or target values. However, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), which has stricter guidelines, the share of the urban population exposed to hazardous PM2.5 levels was almost 80 percent. PM2.5 is one of the most harmful air pollutants, and is attributable to thousands of premature deaths a year.
