** Conventions Norway into the Court – VG

** Conventions Norway into the Court – VG

EEA Surveillance Authority has decided to summon Norway to the Court for breaches of EU air quality directive.

The formal decision that Norway sued, will be made in the ESA Presidium Thursday morning. It confirms ESA President Oda Sletnes, to VG.

– Numbers that ESA has obtained from Norwegian authorities have shown that the level of harmful emissions are too high in several places. Although Norway has implemented measures to deal with pollution, we are not satisfied with the progress, writes Sletnes in an e-mail to VG Wednesday afternoon.

– Therefore, we will refer the matter to the EFTA court, she adds.

High pollution now

VG reported earlier today that NO2 pollution in the air at Hjortnes in Oslo is so high that it shone red on Oslo’s indicator of air quality.

The challenges of high air pollution in Norway is greatest in the winter months.

On Wednesday morning alerts Oslo’s air quality service on high pollution from exhaust and particulate matter along the busiest roads, the highest in the rush hours. Station at Hjortnes stands at E18, a few hundred meters from the Color Line’s ferry terminal in Frognerkilen.

ESA PRESIDENT: Oda Sletnes. Photo: Jorgen Braastad , VG

Sletnes met earlier Wednesday EEA Joint Parliamentary Committee in Strasbourg . Where notified that she ESA Senate Thursday will formally decide to take Norway into the Court for breaches of EU air quality directive, and thus also the EEA Agreement.

The application is the end of ESA’s proceedings, after Asthma and Allergy Association complained Norway to ESA already in 2011, for failure to follow the directive.

– Quite right

Ola Elvestuen (V), the leader in Standing Committee on Energy and the Environment, said he is satisfied with the notified ESA decision:

– It rightly ESA summoning Norway, he says to VG.

– Government and Parliament have been passive on local air pollution. Now it must be traded, and the authorities must support the measures in the major cities. It must include urgent measures, while we must work with the major projects to achieve a systematic which decrease emissions, says Elvestuen.

Also Bellona leader Frederic Hauge ends wholeheartedly criticism and writ of ESA

– Norway has dawdled too long to get measures in place. Bellona has among the work to get electrified traffic in the ports and make shore power for ships to reduce these emissions. We have proposed increased scrapping for diesel cars and a number of other measures, but it happens very little. It must not pay to linger and wait to deliver action plans and implement measures. It only leads to illness, death and fines, says Hauge told VG.

More is sued

Air pollution is a major problem in many EEA countries, especially in large cities where emissions from diesel vehicles is an important reason. The problem is so extensive that the European Commission has similar cases going against two thirds of all EU countries.