The character of air inwards Eastern Europe is far worse than the air breathed past times Western Europeans. The European Air Quality Index well-nigh e'er shows a clear air character split betwixt Eastern together with Western Europe. One huge argue for this split is likely Eastern Europe's reliance on coal power.
The European Air Quality Index visualizes the short-term air character across Europe. The map is based on the information from to a greater extent than than 2 one one thousand air character monitoring stations across the continent. The initial map persuasion shows the air character from '6 hours ago'. However y'all tin role the fourth dimension command to persuasion whatever lx minutes inwards the previous 2 days. If y'all press play together with spotter the total 48 hours y'all volition likely unwrap that most of the air character monitoring stations amongst cherry markers, showing 'poor' or 'very poor' air quality, are situated inwards the E of Europe.
One argue why Eastern Europe has such bad air pollution could last its reliance on coal power. Western Europe (except for Germany) has largely moved away from using coal power. Europe Beyond Coal has an interactive map showing coal ability plants inwards Europe. On the map y'all tin meet that in that place are far to a greater extent than coal ability plants inwards Eastern Europe than inwards the due west of the continent. With the green caveat that correlation isn't causation in that place appears to last to a greater extent than coal ability plants inwards the areas of Europe which regularly accept misfortunate air quality.
The Europe Beyond Coal map allows y'all to filter the ability plants past times the most dirty, the most damaging to wellness together with past times those using lignite. Lignite, or 'brown coal', is a soft flat of coal amongst a relatively depression oestrus content. Lignite contains a lot to a greater extent than H2O content than 'hard' coal. It thence has less issue energy potential per volume unit of measurement together with thence a higher sum of lignite needs to last burnt to render the same sum of issue energy every bit difficult coal. According to the Dark Cloud (PDF) study into Europe's coal manufacture seven of the occur 10 most polluting coal ability plants inwards Europe are powered past times lignite. Most of those seven are inwards Eastern Europe.
