The Council of Ministers today approved the draft Law on Air Quality and Protection of the Atmosphere, a regulation that strengthens the capacity to act against air pollution and constitutes one of the main initiatives undertaken by the Government to achieve healthy levels of air quality within the framework of the Spanish Air Quality Strategy. which will also be approved shortly.

Air pollution continues to be a serious concern in Spain and the rest of Europe, as there are levels of pollution with very significant adverse effects on health and the environment, particularly in urban agglomerations. According to a recent study by the European Commission, air pollution causes 350,000 premature deaths in Europe each year, of which 16,000 correspond to our country.

The aim of the future Law is to replace the current Law on the Protection of the Atmospheric Environment of 1972, which has become outdated by the Constitution and by EU and international regulations, in order to have basic legislation that represents progress in the reduction of pollution and that is in accordance with current circumstances and requirements.

The draft Law on Air Quality and Protection of the Atmosphere is intended to contribute to achieving and maintaining a high level of protection for people and the environment against the adverse effects of pollution. To this end, the regulation is inspired by the principles of precaution and preventive action, of correcting pollution at the source and of the polluter pays.

The new legislation empowers the autonomous communities to exercise more rigorous control, and includes the air quality management model in force in Europe, based on the setting of quality objectives, periodic evaluation and zoning of the territory by the autonomous communities according to pollution levels, identifying those that exceed the permitted levels.