Europe still lagging on air quality

Eight European Union countries exceeded the bloc's air pollution limits in 2011, down from 12 the previous year, the European Environment Agency said in a report published on Monday. Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg and Spain remained above limits, while Denmark, Malta, the Netherlands and Sweden managed to bring their air pollution below the authorized levels.

The most serious air pollutant in Europe is called "particulate matter," including soot, nitrogen oxides and ozone. Particulates, smaller than 2.5 micrometers, can penetrate deep into the human lungs. The European Environment Agency (EEA) says the burning of fossil fuels in electricity generation, industry and transport generates significant amounts of particulates.

Cars and trucks make up 40 percent of all nitrogen oxides emitted in the European Union. EEA Executive Director Jacqueline McGlade also said the emissions in some European cities urgently need to be looked at. Paris, Marseille, Turin, Milan, Rome and a number of Czech, Polish and Bulgarian cities have the highest levels of particle pollution.

Particulate matter is a combination of fine solids and aerosols that are suspended in the air. Increases in particulate pollution have been linked to respiratory and cardiovascular illness, heart attacks and slowed lung development in children and teenagers.

Denmark, Malta, Sweden and the Netherlands managed to bring their air pollution levels below the legal limits. In Amsterdam, city officials reduced the number of large vehicles allowed in the city center, built speed bumps, implemented speed limits and improved public transit. Residents were also encouraged to use bikes, reducing the number of cars on the roads.

Denmark saw among the largest improvements in air quality across Europe, according to the report. The Danish Minister for Climate and Energy Martin Lidegaard (left) and the Minister for Environment Ida Auken (right) have worked hard in the last few years to make Denmark's a green and sustainable economy by addressing the country's economic crisis as well as its climate and resource problems.

German air pollution levels rose in 2011, despite the recent implementation of green zones intended to reduce fine particle emissions from traffic in cities. Cars emitting high levels of pollutants are now banned from entering major urban areas. The disappointing result may have been caused by weather systems that trapped a layer of cold air over the country and kept pollutants from escaping.

Although major improvements in air quality in the atmosphere are best achieved through long-term infrastructure changes, there is an easy way to improve the air quality in your own home. Many indoor plants, like the Spathiphyllum (more commonly known as the lily), are good at reducing contaminants in the air.