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Environmental information systems
PM10 is particulate matter with a diameter of 10µm or less. PM10 is emitted mainly by the combustion of solid fuels for domestic heating, although industrial activities, agriculture and road transport are also important sources (EEA, 2024a). Some comes from natural sources such as sea salt, Saharan dust or volcanoes. Other secondary PM forms in the atmosphere as a combination of different gases (for instance, ammonia and nitrogen dioxide). Member States can discount the contribution of such natural sources from their total concentrations for compliance assessments, as these sources are out of their control. Member States can also discount winter sanding and salting, provided that reasonable measures have been taken to lower concentrations. However, neither natural sources nor winter sanding and salting have been excluded from this status analysis.
Concentrations above the EU daily limit value for PM10 are seen mainly in Italy and some eastern European countries (Map 1 and Figure 3). In many central and eastern European countries, solid fuels such as coal and wood are used for heating households and in some industrial facilities and power plants. The Po Valley in northern Italy is a densely populated and industrialised area with specific meteorological and geographical conditions that favour the accumulation of air pollutants in the atmosphere. Some concentrations are also above the EU daily limit value in the Canary Islands, mainly due to the natural contributions of Saharan dust (MITECO, 2024).
Map 1. Concentrations of PM10 in 2023 and 2024 in relation to the EU daily limit value
Table 1. Summary country status for PM10 in 2023 and 2024
2023 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
Number of reporting Member States/other countries | 27/10(a) | 27/6 |
Number of Member States/other countries with at least one station > EU daily limit value (50µg/m3) | 13/5 | 13/2 |
Number of Member States/other countries with at least one station > EU annual limit value (40µg/m3) | 4/4 | 2/2 |
Number of Member States/other countries with at least one station > WHO daily guideline level (45µg/m3) | 27/9 | 25/5(b) |
Number of Member States/countries with at least one station > WHO annual guideline level (15µg/m3) | 27/10 | 27/4(c) |
Notes: (a) In Kosovo under UNSCR 1244/99, only data for the annual mean fulfil the criteria for minimum data coverage. (b) All reporting countries except Denmark, Luxembourg and Switzerland. (c) All reporting countries except Andorra and Switzerland.
Source: Air Quality e-Reporting database (EEA, 2025a).
Figure 2. Percentage of reporting monitoring stations registering PM10 concentrations above EU limit values and WHO guideline levels
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In 2023, 11% of monitoring stations measured concentrations of PM10 above the EU daily limit value (Figure 2), 86% of which were urban and 10% suburban.
In addition to data collected from monitoring stations, countries can also use modelling applications to assess compliance with the standards. For 2023, Italy and Poland reported exceedances of the PM10 daily limit value for four and two air quality zones, respectively, based on assessment models.