Groundbreaking Lawsuit: Polish Government Sued Over Smog and Public Health

The ClientEarth Foundation, on behalf of two individuals suffering from asthma, has just sued the Polish government for failure to effectively combat smog. For the first time in Poland, a court will have to determine whether there is a direct link between air pollution and serious diseases. This groundbreaking case could potentially change the way the rights to life and health are enforced.

– The lawsuits we have prepared with individuals relate to the impact of air pollution on their health. We expect the court to, first, establish a connection between the deteriorating state of health and poor air quality in Poland, and second – award compensation for the harm suffered due to air that, first, fails to meet standards, and second, has resulted in health damage – Agnieszka Warso-Buchanan, a legal advisor and board member of ClientEarth Foundation Prawnicy dla Ziemi, explains in a conversation with the Newseria Biznes agency.

One of the victims is a 55-year-old man from Rybnik in Silesia, a city once ranked among the most polluted in Europe. The man has been suffering from asthma and other respiratory diseases for over 20 years. He has to take medication regularly and is under constant medical care. The second plaintiff is a five-year-old boy from the outskirts of Toruń, represented by his mother, who also struggles with asthma. Smog, especially during the heating season, exacerbates his breathing problems, and the family incurs high treatment costs. Those represented by the ClientEarth Foundation demand compensation for health loss (respectively PLN 200,000 and PLN 100,000) and damages for medical treatment costs.

– While we note an improvement in air quality, it still fails to meet levels safe for our health, and we may even say that it threatens our health. On a large part of Polish territory, it fails not only to meet the standards recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), but also legal regulations – points out Agnieszka Warso-Buchanan.

According to the WHO, air pollution is the greatest single environmental threat to health in the EU.
As the foundation points out, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA), toxic pollution leads to premature death of over 50,000 people.

– We know today that smog affects all structures, all tissues. Because particulate matter gets into the blood, small particles penetrate the blood and then poison every organ of ours. Today there are no diseases that are not caused by air pollution. We know that it causes damage to the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, hormonal disorders, important in the central nervous system, especially dangerous in children, in the developing body, and even more dangerous in the fetus – says Dr hab. Med. Tadeusz Zielonka, Prof. WUM, pulmonologist, expert of the Physicians Coalition for Healthy Air and the Polish Lung Disease Society. – It affects the eyesight, skin, upper respiratory tract, everything.

The main source of air pollution is burning coal and wood in home heating installations as well as emissions from transport. Emissions from these sectors, including suspended particulate matter: PM10 and PM2.5, benzo(a)pyrene and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) contribute to the development and exacerbation of respiratory system diseases, including asthma, cardiovascular diseases, and nervous system diseases.

– What is dangerous in Poland is the excessive amount of suspended particulates, and we are absolutely in the first place in the European Union. The situation is even worse with benzo(a)pyrene – explains Prof. Tadeusz Zielonka.

– We observe inconsistency on the part of the authorities, which on one hand declare accelerating measures to improve air quality, and on the other hand slow them down. An example is the lack of assured continuous financing for the flagship Clean Air program. We recently learned that the financing of this program is questionable. Another example is the very unambitious amendment to the regulation on solid fuels, which allows the burning of so-called coal waste in homes until 2031. In this situation, it seems that lawsuits will be the only effective tool for asserting the right to health and clean, safe air – argues Agnieszka Warso-Buchanan.

Data quoted by the ClientEarth Foundation, prepared by the American research center at the University of Chicago (Air Quality Life Index), indicate that if the air quality in Toruń met WHO recommendations, the city’s residents would gain an average of 10 additional months of life. In the case of Rybnik, the data indicates that smog takes almost two years from the residents.

– It seems that court proceedings will be the only effective tool for enforcing the right to health and clean, safe air – says the lawyer. – Such lawsuits, which are part of strategic court proceedings, in our opinion, significantly influence environmental policies. First, they could motivate the authorities to take more ambitious actions, and secondly, the result that we will all feel will be a significant improvement in air quality, which will be safe for our health. We hope that the systematic actions of the authorities will lead to a quick elimination of coal from individual heating, secure financing for the Clean Air program, which is the basic instrument funding the replacement of heat sources at home, so-called smoky ones, and financing thermo-modernization. Thirdly, we expect that three ministries – education, health, and environment – will conduct a nationwide informational-educational campaign about the impact of air pollution on health.

Similar cases concerning the responsibility of the authorities to protect citizens from the effects of air pollution have been conducted in courts in Germany, the UK, and Italy. These forced the governments of these countries to strengthen air protection policies and take more effective measures. Experts from the ClientEarth Foundation point out that this is part of a broader movement aimed at holding governments accountable for the lack of public health protection.

– An example of effective action to improve air quality was the introduction in London of the Ultra Low Emission Zone, which contributed to a significant reduction in concentrations of toxic nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), the source of which is transport. Similarly, in Germany, as a result of citizens’ actions, the Supreme Court confirmed in its ruling that so-called diesel bans, i.e. restrictions for cars with diesel engines, can be introduced in German cities. The examples mentioned confirm that the result of the described legal actions were systemic changes that lead to an improvement in air quality – says Agnieszka Warso-Buchanan.

ClientEarth Foundation emphasizes that we can no longer ignore how smog destroys people’s health. The organization calls on the authorities to take immediate action for clean air because every day without changes costs the health and life of Polish citizens.