STORY: EU should take "bold and comprehensive action" to improve air quality: Spanish researcher
SHOOTING TIME: Nov. 22, 2023
DATELINE: Nov. 23, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:27
LOCATION: BARCELONA, Spain
CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Barcelona, Spain
2. SOUNDBITE (English): MARK J NIEUWENHUIJSEN, ISGlobal's Head of Climate, Air Pollution, Nature and Urban Health
3. various of Barcelona, Spain

STORYLINE:

Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) calls for "bold and comprehensive action" from the EU in adopting stricter measures to improve air quality.

In September, the European Parliament approved tougher air pollution rules requiring member states to meet WHO air quality guidelines by 2035 rather than 2030.

Mark J Nieuwenhuijsen, ISGlobal's Head of Climate, Air Pollution, Nature and Urban Health, said that urban development is crucial to addressing problems in the city.

SOUNDBITE (English): MARK J NIEUWENHUIJSEN, ISGlobal's Head of Climate, Air Pollution, Nature and Urban Health
"We need urban developments like the superblocks or like the low traffic neighborhoods or car-free neighborhoods or things like the 15-minute city to address our problems in our cities with high air pollution levels because that's where most of our people live nowadays."

In terms of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which is produced by burning fossil fuels at high temperatures, Madrid tops ISGlobal's list of EU cities with the highest NO2 levels, followed by Antwerp, Turin, Paris, Milan and Barcelona.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Barcelona, Spain.
(XHTV)