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00:00Bon. It's time now for our Entrenews segment. Today, we're going to be talking about cars,
00:05air pollution, and a vote later this afternoon at the French National Assembly that could
00:09unravel years of public policy on air pollution. For more on this, I'm joined on the set by our
00:14Solange Mougin. Solange, first of all, what's this vote all about?
00:17Well, it's all about low emission zones, or as they are called in French,
00:21les ZFE, or the Zone à Faible Émission. And here in France, a bit of a political fiasco has
00:28been going on since March 26, when the far right and the right, they put forth two amendments
00:33against the view of the Macron government that would basically wipe away these, get rid of
00:41these low emission zones in France. And those amendments passed in the committee by a large
00:46majority of 26 for, 11 against, and 9 abstentions. So today, the issue will be discussed in the
00:53National Assembly. And during this discussion, the low emission zones could either stand,
00:59be rolled back, or be scrapped entirely. Beyond the political moverings of this, what's interesting
01:05here is how France got here, how these zones have begun to embody class divides, and how these zones
01:11are rarely discussed in regard to the number of lives that they save. The French health ministry says
01:17that there are some 40,000 premature deaths in France from air pollution alone. That is 12 times
01:23the number of car accident deaths every year. Now, the issue also shows how there is a societal shift
01:29going on right now about how to adapt our public spaces or not, and with those decisions having an
01:35effect on our health, on our planet, and also on our pocketbooks. So I'm going to try and walk us
01:39through what's happened here in France. Then we'll talk about air pollution and how dirty Paris' air
01:45really is compared to other cities, and what other nations are doing in regard to these low emission
01:51zones, because this issue is happening in France. But there are some 300 similar clean air schemes
01:56across Europe. So Solange, what's all the backstory on all of this? I mean, why are low emission zone
02:01votes coming up now after so many years of being in place? Well, it's important to keep in mind that
02:05there is municipal elections coming up next year, and then after that, presidential ones in 2027.
02:12And in this vein, there is a fear among some elected officials of a next yellow vest movement
02:17or widespread anger over environmental policies. And these emission zones, these ZFEs, they are
02:24unpopular in France and have been since they were introduced in 2019. So just a recap here of the
02:29basic premise of these zones. It's that older, more pollution-emitting cars are progressively no
02:36longer allowed in cities or highly populated polluted areas. Here in France, cars have stickers.
02:41That are called critères. And they go from electric and hybrid to level five, the most polluting.
02:47And currently in Paris, as just one example, cars with level threes or above are not allowed to drive
02:53in the greater Paris region. There are exceptions to this, and the rules are largely unenforced.
03:00People aren't often fined for this, which actually environmentalists say is already pulling the rug out
03:05of these some two dozen zones in their efficiency in France. But the idea is to get people to replace
03:12their older diesel gas guzzlers with new cars that emit fewer pollutants, which have a devastating
03:17effect on people's health and also on the climate. But since its inception, many people have argued that
03:23these low-emission zone restrictions are unfair to the poor, who can't necessarily buy a new car.
03:28They can't afford it. In addition to this class element, there's also actually some political
03:33anger as well. Many mayors say that they feel they've been abandoned by the government, that
03:38they've been instructed to put these zones into place, make them stricter, but that nationwide schemes
03:43to entice people to trade in their cars or use public transit, these incentives have been rolled back
03:49or not kept up. Therefore, putting these mayors basically on the front line, they say, of the wrath of
03:54some of their constituents. Right, because scrapping these low-emission zones could have both short-term
03:59but also long-term financial consequences for the whole country. Yeah, France could be on the hook
04:04for some three billion euros in European funds if they do away with these zones entirely. The French
04:10Treasury could potentially have to reimburse, they say, a billion euros to Brussels. Now, amendments have
04:16been floated to loosen the rules in some cities and keep them in place in zones where pollution levels
04:22were above EU limits for three years in a row, essentially Paris and Lyon. But these financial
04:28incentives from Europe get to the heart of why these zones are in place, to protect the health
04:33of citizens. In Europe, some 240,000 people die every year from air pollution, according to the
04:40European Environmental Agency, with, again, as I said, some 40,000 premature deaths in France,
04:45according to the French Health Agency. These are deaths from lung cancer, stroke, heart attack,
04:50asthma studies also show that some of these pollutants have adverse effects on mental health,
04:56with increases in issues like schizophrenia, depression. So the environmental health benefits
05:00of lowering these air pollution, this has been proven scientifically. But so far in France,
05:08it hasn't really been, French people haven't really been sold on these ZFEs as a life-saving
05:13initiative. For many people, it is still a personal freedom issue. Right. All right, let's talk more
05:17specifically about Paris and Paris's air pollution problem or not, and how it's doing compared to
05:22other cities. Well, our cell phones, they often tell us it is a red pollution day, or you go for a
05:28walk in Paris, you may see or feel the pollution in the capital at times. But despite this, Paris is
05:33actually not on top of the world's most polluted air lists, or even of Europe's. For those records,
05:40you have to sadly go to India or the Balkan nations in regard to Europe. In regard to air pollution in
05:46France, the statistics, they basically change depending on the chemicals that you're measuring
05:50on the season, and also geography plays a big role here. But so does traffic. And Paris comes in second
05:58behind London when it comes to the most traffic jams in Europe. According to Intrix's annual report,
06:05drivers in Paris spent 97 hours in traffic in 2024 after London's 101 hours. But unlike Paris's ZFEs,
06:14London's ULES, or ultra low emissions zones, is actually solidly in place in London. And studies
06:20have shown that it's massively improved the air quality in the UK city, with nitrogen dioxide
06:27levels cut in half in the city centre. In Italy, too, the zones, they've actually been in place since
06:32the 1970s. So what gives in France? Well, in July 2023, the government commissioned a report to compare
06:39the over 300 clean air schemes of Europe. And it found that a more global approach of boosting
06:44public transport, of bike infrastructure, of trade in car schemes, and better communication,
06:50all of that is needed for these zones to be accepted. Things like France having invested
06:54twice as much in roads than in rail travel since 1995 have not helped either, nor has cutting the
07:01budget of green initiatives from 2.5 billion euros last year to 1.5 billion euros this year. So now,
07:08the fragile low emissions zones, it actually may be just a symptom perhaps of a larger walking back
07:16of certain environmental and health policies at the national level. All right, Solange, thanks for
07:20keeping an eye on all of that for us as that vote's taking place today. That's our Solange Moujean.
07:25Next up, this week's France.