The Walloon parliament adopted, on Friday, the proposed decree repealing the general ban on the circulation, in Wallonia, of the most polluting vehicles, a measure provided for in a decree of January 2019 on the fight against atmospheric pollution linked to the circulation of vehicles.
As in committee on Wednesday, the text carried by the majority was unanimously approved during the last plenary session of the legislature. During the debates, the Minister of the Environment, Céline Tellier, once again returned to the arguments which led to this change of heart. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution is mainly localized in cities and bans on driving outside of these urban centers would have little impact on NO2 concentrations. On the other hand, they would cause a lot of inconvenience due to the lack of alternatives to the car in rural areas, she explained.
“The establishment of a widespread low-emission zone in Walloon territory appears to be a disproportionate, inadequate and anti-social measure to resolve the problem of air quality in cities. I would like to concentrate our energy and our resources on the places where there are problems,” added the minister.
The latter therefore proposed to the Walloon government to support the municipalities concerned via a financial system, the terms of which are still being discussed.
Initially announced for 2023, the Generalized Low Emission Zone was to come into force on January 1, 2025 in the south of the country. It initially provided for a ban on the circulation of vehicles without Euronorm and Euronorm 1, 2 and 3, or 17,500 vehicles (0.84%). The latter would then have been gradually joined by a whole series of polluting vehicles.
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