The principal legal instrument through which the European Union implements its policies related to Air Quality is Directive 2008/50/EC of the European Parliament and of the council of the 21 May 2008 on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe together with Directive 2004/107/EC of the European Parliament and of the council of 15 December 2004 relating to arsenic, cadmium, mercury, nickel and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air. Both these Directives were transposed into Maltese Law through the Ambient Air Quality Regulations (S.L. 549.59), which:
- Set a general policy framework for dealing with ambient air quality.
- Oblige Malta to put in place systems for assessing ambient air quality based upon common methods and criteria.
- Oblige Malta to maintain ambient air quality where it is good and improve it in other cases, by means of plans and programs of action.
- Lay down provisions for a system of gathering, reporting and publicizing information. This includes both data reported to the Commission and information to the public.
- Set limit values for sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, benzene, ozone, particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) and lead, which are not to be exceeded throughout the Maltese Islands.
- Set target values for arsenic, cadmium, nickel and poly aromatics expressed as benzo[a]pyrene, which are to be, as far as is reasonably possible, complied with. The following are the standards which Malta (together with the other EU Member States) is obliged to comply with.
The following are the standards which Malta (together with the other EU Member States) is obliged to comply with;
| Pollutant | Concentration | Averaging period | Permitted exceedances each year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 25 µg/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
| Sulphur dioxide (SO2) | 350 µg/m3 | 1 hour | 24 |
| 125 µg/m3 | 24 hours | 3 |
|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 200 µg/m3 | 1 hour | 18 |
| 40 µg/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
|
| PM10 | 50 µg/m3 | 24 hours | 35 |
| 40 µg/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
|
| Lead (Pb) | 0.5 µg/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
| Carbon monoxide (CO) | 10 mg/m3 | Maximum daily 8 hour mean | n/a |
| Benzene | 5 µg/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
| Ozone | 120 µg/m3 | Maximum daily 8 hour mean | 25 |
| Arsenic (As) | 6 ng/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
| Cadmium (Cd) | 5 ng/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
| Nickel (Ni) | 20 ng/m3 | 1 year | n/a |
| Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons | 1 ng/m3 (expressed as concentration of Benzo(a)pyrene) | 1 year | n/a |
Pursuant to regulation 32 of the Ambient Air Quality Regulations (S.L. 549.59), the Minister for the Environment has declared an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) through the issuing of an Air Quality Management Order as laid down in Schedule 13 of the said Regulations
National Emissions Ceilings
The Directive on the reduction of national emissions of certain atmospheric pollutants (Directive (EU) 2016/2284), better known as the NEC Directive, together with the various source specific legislative instruments (such as the Industrial Emissions Directive (Directive 2010/75/EU) or the Directives setting Vehicle Emissions Standards) make possible the achievement of the standards above. The NEC Directive sets the maximum amounts (in percentages, based on the emission levels of 2005) of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, non-methane volatile organic compounds, and PM2.5 which, can be emitted by each Member State. The Directive on the reduction of national emissions of certain atmospheric pollutants obliges Malta to achieve the following emission reductions based on 2005 emissions by 2020 and 2030, and to identify indicative emission limits in 2025. The Directive was transposed in Maltese Law through the Limitation of Emissions of Certain Atmospheric Pollutants Regulations (S.L. 549.124).
| Compliance Year | NOx | SO2 | NH3 | NMVOC | PM2.5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | -42% | -77% | -4% | -23% | -25% |
| 2025 | -61% | -86% | -14% | -25% | -38% |
| 2030 | -79% | -95% | -24% | -27% | -50% |
Emission Limits for 2020, 2025 and 2030
Regulation 4 of the Limitation of Emissions of Certain Atmospheric Pollutants Regulations, (S.L. 549.124), obliges ERA to publish on its website the emission limits in tonnes equivalent to the respective emission reductions in sub-regulations 2, 3 and 4 of regulation 4, see the tables below:
Table 1: Emission Limits to be complied with by 2020
| Pollutant | Emission Reductions in Article 4(2), SL 549.124 | Emission Levels in 2005 | 2020 Emission Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| (%) | (tonnes) | (tonnes) | |
| SO2 | 77 | 12116 | 2787 |
| NOx | 42 | 9830 | 5701 |
| NMVOC | 23 | 3234 | 2490 |
| NH3 | 4 | 1881 | 1805 |
| PM2.5 | 25 | 829 | 622 |
Table 2: Indicative Emission Limits to be achieved by 2025
| Pollutant | Emission Reductions in Article 4(3), SL 549.124 | Emission Levels in 2005 | 2025 Emission Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| (%) | (tonnes) | (tonnes) |
|
| SO2 | 86 | 12116 | 1696 |
| NOx | 60 | 9830 | 3883 |
| NMVOC | 25 | 3234 | 2426 |
| NH3 | 14 | 1881 | 1617 |
| PM2.5 | 38 | 829 | 518 |
Table 3: Emission Limits to be complied with by 2030
| Pollutant | Emission Reductions in Article 4(4), SL 549.124 | Emission Levels in 2005 | 2030 Emission Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| (%) | (tonnes) | (tonnes) | |
| SO2 | 95 | 12116 | 606 |
| NOx | 79 | 9830 | 2064 |
| NMVOC | 27 | 3234 | 2361 |
| NH3 | 24 | 1881 | 1429 |
| PM2.5 | 50 | 829 | 415 |
Compliance with these ceilings is assessed through the Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (prepared by the Member States every year) and the projections (prepared by the Member States every two years), which are accompanied by the Informative Inventory Report on an annual basis. The time series for the emission of atmospheric pollutants by the EU Member States can be viewed on this webpage. In addition, ERA reports the spatially disaggregated national emission inventories and large point source inventories, as required under the NEC Directive.
The National Air Pollution Control Programme for Malta outlines the measures selected for adoption in the coming years with a view to meet the above-mentioned emission reduction commitments.
The NEC Directive also requires monitoring of the impacts of air pollution upon ecosystems. To assess such impact, the network of the monitoring sites and the associated indicators used for monitoring air pollution is first designated, followed by the reporting of the monitoring of air pollution impacts.
Multilateral Environmental Agreements
The NEC Directive implements the European Union’s obligations under a multilateral environment agreement known as the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution. The main aim of this agreement is to combat acidification, eutrophication and ground-level ozone as well as, to limit and, as far as possible, gradually reduce and prevent air pollution including long-range trans-boundary air pollution.
