News Analysis: Experts call for long-term strategy after Rome bans car to fight air pollution

Rome has imposed a partial ban on motor vehicles on Friday and Saturday, as local authorities struggle to battle persisting high levels of air pollutants.

Vehicles which failed to meet pollution standards were not allowed to enter the "green belt", or areas inside Rome's Ring Road (GRA), from December 3 to 6. Cars and motorcycles with odd and even registration numbers were banned from use in the inner city on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

The ban was due to "persisting high concentration of particulate matter (PM10), which exceeded the daily limit for four consecutive days from November 28 to December 1," according to the decree issued by Rome Commissioner Francesco Paolo Tronca.

Similar measures were also in place in November: vehicles which failed to meet pollution standards were banned from use for at least six days in the month, and a full ban on private cars was ordered on November 15.

Yet, environmental experts believe such restrictions are not enough to solve the problem and called for more stringent measures and a long-term policy.

"The traffic measures in Rome are not sufficiently effective," said Andrea Minutolo, scientific office coordinator with Italy's main environmental group Legambiente. According to Minutolo, the legal limit for key air pollutants are being repeatedly exceeded in Rome as well as in several other Italian cities.

A wide European Union (EU) body of legislation sets the limit for major air pollutants, such as particulate matter and fine particles (PM10 and PM2.5), and greenhouse emissions responsible for global warming like nitrogen oxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, and methane.

Regarding the particulate matter, a 2008 EU directive says that the daily limit of PM10 cannot exceed 50 micrograms per cubic meter (50 µg/m3) for more than 35 days in a year, and its annual average amount cannot exceed 40 µg/m3.

Such legislation must be applied by all EU member states. Local authorities in Italy are also compelled to implement actions to curb pollution levels when the PM10 average limit has been surpassed for three consecutive days.

Air pollution represents one of the main environmental issues in Italy, especially in urban areas. 34.4 percent of households have reported problems related to it, according to a 2014 report by the National Institute for Statistics (ISTAT).

Yet, the Italian capital, with a population of over 4 million, is not among the most air polluted cities in Italy, data showed.

Among 88 provincial capitals scrutinized in 2014, some 33 were found to have exceedingly high level of PM10 for more than 35 days in the year, the Legambiente Mal'aria (Sick Air) report stated.

With 43 days recorded high levels of air pollutants, Rome ranked 28th on the list and was behind major northern cities like Milan (68 days) or Turin (77 days), and some other smaller towns.

Compared to cities along the industrial Po Valley in northern Italy, the Italian capital benefits from the lack of a strong industrial sector in its suburbs and favorable climatic conditions.

Yet, air pollution is getting worse in Rome.

"In the past few years, the PM10 daily limit of 50 µg/m3 has been surpassed for more than 35 days in one or more areas of Rome," Minutolo stressed, "The monitoring station in Tiburtina area, for example, has recorded high levels of PM10 for 43 days in 2014."

Environmental groups have therefore called for more stringent actions to fight air pollution.

"A car ban is just an emergency measure," Minutolo said, adding "it is not part of a long-term strategy."

To battle worsening air pollution in Rome, Minutolo proposed a more comprehensive plan to manage the city traffic, more accessible public transportation and offering more alternatives to encourage efficient use of cars. Enditem