Last year, the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) in the Netherlands fell sharply. The 17% drop is the largest in fifty years. In 2020, 623 cases were notified compared to 754 in 2019.

More nitrogen and phosphorus have been ending up in the soil on farms since 2015. As a result, nitrate concentrations have been rising since 2017 in leachates and ditch water from those farms.

In 2019, the calculated concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM10) were below the European limit values ​​in almost the whole of the Netherlands. Locally, the limit value for nitrogen dioxide is still being exceeded.

The Dutch government announced its plans for the first steps in tackling the nitrogen deposition issue.

Since the 1970s, European policies to improve air quality have resulted in fewer emissions in many countries.

Exposure to environmental noise is expected to cause more health problems in the Netherlands. There is increasingly more noise, and new houses are being built closer to noise sources.

As of this autumn, RIVM will advise against burning wood in unfavourable weather conditions and or poor air quality.