In 2017 around 14% of the European Union (EU) population reported that they had been exposed to pollution, grime and other environmental problems in their local area. The share has remained close to 14% since 2012.
The EU figure conceals considerable variations between the different EU Member States. In 2017, Malta recorded by far the highest share of its population (26.5%) reporting that they had been exposed to pollution, grime or other environmental problems, while the next highest shares were recorded in Germany (24.5%) and Greece (20.3%). Rates of exposure to pollution, grime or other environmental problems were also above the EU average in Luxembourg, Latvia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Romania.
At the other end of the range, the three Nordic Member States (Denmark, Finland and Sweden), together with Croatia, recorded some of the lowest exposure rates to pollution, grime or other environmental problems (between 6 and 8% of their populations). The Member State with the lowest share of the population reporting exposure to these environmental problems was Ireland, with 5.3%.
For more information:
- Eurostat Statistics Explained article on quality of life indicators – natural and living environment
- Overview of statistics on quality of life
- The source data can be found in Eurostat ilc_mddw02.
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