Bad air over La Linea and Madrid

THE LATEST report released by the WHO (World Health Organisation) about cities that are over the air contamination limit of PM10 particles has listed, among all of Spain’s 46 cities, La Linea in Cadiz as the most contaminated, followed only by Madrid and Barcelona.

Of the 3.7 million people who die every year from illnesses derived from these particles, usually respiratory illnesses which might have been avoided had they lived in a less contaminated area, 16,000 belong to Spain.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment has defended the nation’s air quality with the following statement “The average air quality in residential centres with more than 50,000 residents does not present above the legislated limits.” The problem is that the government is talking about average air quality when the problems are limited to three or four cities in which the air pollution is obvious and can be seen clearly, as a grey cloud hanging over the city in question, from a distance.

Another study done by Ecologists in Action reflects the alarming statistic that 17.3 million people in Spain, that is 37 per cent of the population, are breathing overly contaminated air.

The government is currently studying various alternatives with which to remedy the situation.