Meeting European Air Quality targets, latest technology Euro 6 petrol and diesel, and electro-mobility; why all will contribute

In its briefing note “rethinking the cost of conventionally fueled road transport” the NGO Bellona rightly argue that air pollution, based on current scientific knowledge, is the first cause of death in the EU. Bellona however makes a questionable shortcut by largely attributing air pollution to road transport. Based on the latest data from the European Environmental Agency updated in December 2016 (see graph below) air pollution includes a number of pollutants which originate from different sources.

As a result, the NGO Bellona are making the assertion that electro-mobility is “the only viable cost-effective approach to drastically reducing damaging air pollution while safeguarding human health” and state that a conventionally fuelled car would have to pay back €2,371 per year to correctly compensate the public.