Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain – January 19, 2026 – Barcelona’s air quality continued its positive trend in 2025, marking the third consecutive year of improvement. Data from the city’s 10 monitoring stations indicate a historic low in pollution since observations began in 2000, as announced by the City Council on Monday. All stations now comply with European Union standards, showing significant improvement in nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels, which have a maximum limit of 40 micrograms per cubic meter. Particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) levels, with maximums of 40 and 20 respectively, remained stable. Despite these advancements, Barcelona still exceeds the EU’s 2030 targets and falls considerably short of the more stringent recommendations set by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Factors Contributing to Improved Air Quality
The notable improvement in air quality over recent years is largely attributed to the near disappearance of older, more polluting diesel vehicles and the renewal of the fleet, driven by the implementation of the Low Emission Zone (ZBE). In the past year, for instance, vehicles registered with an ‘ECO’ label surpassed those with a ‘B’ (yellow) label. However, researchers and environmental associations caution that sustaining these reductions in pollution necessitates a drastic decrease in traffic volume.
The annual average evolution of nitrogen dioxide in Barcelona, measured in micrograms per cubic meter, clearly demonstrates this positive trend. The Urgell Street station, typically the worst performer in nitrogen dioxide, saw its levels drop from 33 to 29 micrograms per cubic meter. Across the city, NO2 levels registered declines of between 4% and 12% compared to 2024. Particulate matter data for the Eixample station remained stable in 2025, with PM10 at 22 micrograms per cubic meter and PM2.5 at 11 micrograms per cubic meter, consistent with 2024 figures.
Expert and Citizen Group Reactions: Praise and Reservations
The City Council, experts, and citizen groups alike have welcomed these positive figures, albeit with certain reservations. Experts warn against complacency, expressing concern over the public’s diminishing attention to environmental quality. Citizen organizations, such as Eixample Respira, have for months questioned the reliability of the 2025 data. They argue that ongoing construction work on Urgell Street, which has reduced traffic from four to two lanes, “distorts the data and conceals the real pollution in Eixample,” the district most affected by traffic.
Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet addressed these concerns, stating that “the data has been validated by the Generalitat: the L8 works, she assures, do not distort the result because the reduction in traffic has not been sufficient to invalidate the figures.”
Barcelona’s Progress Towards 2030 Goals
Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet highlighted that with maximum NO2 levels at 29 micrograms per cubic meter and particulate matter at 22 and 11 micrograms, “the city is closer to the 20 and 10 microgram objective set for 2030 than to the currently valid maximum.” She also announced the operationalization of a new monitoring station on Meridiana Avenue in 2026, aiming to expand monitoring coverage. Bonet emphasized that “improving air quality is about health.” Regarding the gap with WHO values, she stated that the city council “is bound by European regulations and those required in 2023.” She added, “The values recommended by the WHO are important as a lever for improvement and greater demand, but we must adhere to those set by the EU.”
Health Impact and Future Challenges
Bonet and Health Councillor Marta Villanueva pointed out that despite Barcelona’s continuous reduction in pollution levels, its impact on public health persists. Villanueva cited data from the Barcelona Public Health Agency, showing a 32% reduction in mortality attributable to air pollution between 2020 and 2024, compared to the two years preceding the pandemic (2018-2019). This improvement prevented 600 deaths, bringing the total from 1,900 to 1,300. For 2025, estimates suggest a further reduction in attributable mortality to 45%, preventing 800 deaths and reducing the total from 1,900 to 1,100.
CSIC researcher Xavier Querol praised the improvement, attributing it to “many reasons: the disappearance of old diesel vehicles, the ZBE, and citizen awareness.” He noted, “We comply with the European directive, and the situation is improving, there are no doubts, because it was permissive, but the drop of nine or ten micrograms until 2023 is an enormous challenge, and the measures currently foreseen will not be enough to go below 20.” Querol reminded that European institutions are expected to present a roadmap for achieving the new level in 2028 but urged against “lowering our guard, getting to work, and taking measures: the number of vehicles must be reduced more sharply; mobility plans speak of large reductions, but they are not so marked.”
Querol believes that further improvements will be more challenging after the significant reductions of the last three years, as the most drastic work has already been done. Looking back five to ten years, the researcher expressed concern about the diminished public attention to pollution: “It is global; it is not a question of Catalonia or Barcelona; there is a degradation of attention to environmental issues; we see it in how the EU has backtracked on agreed measures.”
Source: https://elpais.com/espana/catalunya/2026-01-19/la-calidad-del-aire-de-barcelona-mejora-por-tercer-ano-pero-esta-lejos-de-las-recomendaciones-de-la-oms.html
