Memo: Joint statement by the Danish EU Presidency and Commissioner Potočnik welcoming new international agreement to tackle air pollution

The EU reached an international agreement to update the Gothenburg Protocol, setting more ambitious targets to reduce trans-boundary air pollution. The revised objectives of the Protocol will see a reduction in EU emissions of around 60% for sulphur, 40% for nitrogen oxides (NOx), 30% for volatile organic compounds (VOCs), 6% for ammonia and 20% for particulate matter compared to 2005 levels. There's also agreement to act on so called 'Black Carbon', a pollutant with short-lived climate forcing characteristics.