Zero Pollution Action Plan

Objectives

The zero pollution vision for 2050 is for air, water and soil pollution to be reduced to levels no longer considered harmful to health and natural ecosystems, that respect the boundaries with which our planet can cope, thereby creating a toxic-free environment.

This is translated into key 2030 targets to speed up reducing pollution at source. These targets include:

• improving air quality to reduce the number of premature deaths caused by air pollution by 55%;
• improving water quality by reducing waste, plastic litter at sea (by 50%) and microplastics released into the environment (by 30%);
• improving soil quality by reducing nutrient losses and chemical pesticides’ use by 50%;
• reducing by 25% the EU ecosystems where air pollution threatens biodiversity;
• reducing the share of people chronically disturbed by transport noise by 30%, and 
• significantly reducing waste generation and by 50% residual municipal waste.

The Action Plan aims to strengthen the EU green, digital and economic leadership, whilst creating a healthier, socially fairer Europe and planet. It provides a compass to mainstream pollution prevention in all relevant EU policies, to step up implementation of the relevant EU legislation and to identify possible gaps.

Actions

The European Green Deal announced headline actions on zero pollution.

• Chemical strategy for sustainability -  to better protect citizens and the environment against hazardous chemicals.
• Zero Pollution Action Plan for water, air and soil - to better prevent, remedy, monitor and report on pollution.
• Revising measures to address pollution from large industrial installations  - to ensure they are consistent with climate, energy and circular economy policies.

You can track the progress of the individual flagships and actions announced in the Zero Pollution Action Plan:

See progress on actions

The Zero Pollution Monitoring and Outlook, published on 8 December 2022, offers a snapshot of the current state of the pollution in the EU, and answers questions on the pollution trends over the past years, and whether we are likely to achieve 2030 zero pollution targets.

See progress on targets

The Dashboard, released on 3 March 2025, tells you how clean your region is and which EU capital cities are the cleanest.

See “Towards zero pollution in regions and capital cities” Dashboard

Timeline

Previous and upcoming zero pollution actions

Policy areas

• Air : EU action to improve air quality and reduce air pollution.
• Chemicals : EU action to ensure chemicals are safe, for health and the environment.
• Circular economy: The EU’s transition to a circular economy with a focus on green growth.
• Industrial emissions : EU action to make industry more sustainable and reduce industrial emissions.
• Marine and coastal environment : EU action to protect Europe’s coasts, seas and oceans.
• Nature and biodiversity: EU action on environmental conservation and protection.
• Noise : EU action to reduce environmental noise pollution.
• Plastics : EU action on plastic production and pollution to contribute to a circular economy.
• Soil and land : EU action for the sustainable use of soil and land.
• Water : EU action on water issues, to protect water resources.

Related strategies

• European Green Deal 
• Smart mobility
• The Renovation Wave
• The Beating Cancer Action Plan