Air quality: the local co-benefit
Less fossil combustion cuts not only CO₂ but also local air pollutants. Annual means of NO₂ and particulate matter in Germany — by station type, because traffic-side levels are markedly higher than background.
A local, immediate benefit: clean air acts on health here and now — unlike the CO₂ effect, which counts globally and over decades. Both hinge on the same source: burning fossil fuels.
Station types: traffic = right at busy roads (hotspot); background = the area-wide baseline away from single sources (what most people breathe); industrial = within the influence of industrial plants.
Note: National means by station type (background/traffic/industrial) — the split matters because traffic stations are markedly higher. Annual means; O₃ is deliberately omitted (a secondary pollutant with a different health metric). Values rounded.
Data source: German Environment Agency (UBA), Air Data API (dl-de/by-2.0) — per-station annual balances, averaged nationally by type (own calculation).
Emissions → air → health
The air has become measurably cleaner: traffic-side NO₂ has almost halved since 2010, and all values are now below the EU limit. This was driven mainly by cleaner combustion and less fossil transport — the same levers that cut CO₂ emissions. But: most values are still above the stricter WHO guidelines (NO₂ 10, PM₂.₅ 5 µg/m³). The lever works twice over — for the climate globally, for health immediately and locally.