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Friends of the Earth and Others v. France - decision

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This case marks the conclusion of nearly a decade of litigation over France’s failure to comply with EU Air Quality Directive 2008/50/EC, which sets binding limit values for nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and particulate matter (PM10).

The applicants, Les Amis de la Terre, France Nature Environnement, and other NGOs initiated the case in 2017 after years of systemic exceedances in major French cities.

Between 2017 and 2023, the Council of State repeatedly found France in breach of its EU obligations and issued a series of escalating astreintes (financial penalties), reaching €10 million per semester. The Court noted that the government often preferred to pay penalties rather than adopt politically sensitive measures to curb air pollution.

However, in April 2025, the Court considered that France had implemented credible and sufficient measures to achieve compliance, most notably through the mandatory Low Emission Zones (Zones à faibles émissions ZFE) introduced by the Climate and Resilience Law (2021) and expanded in 2024. 

The Court therefore terminated the astreinte and declared its 2017 injunction fully executed.

Friends of the Earth and Others v. France

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

Activities that involve the cultivation of crops and raising of livestock for food, fibre, and other products essential for human life and industry.

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

A ban is a legal action that prevents the sale or supply of a product or service, or that recalls a product from the market. Examples are bans on SF6, greenwashing, fossil fuel advertisement or single-use plastics.

Activities involving the catching, processing, and selling of fish for food, recreation, and industry.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Air pollution involves harmful contaminants in the air, affecting both indoor and outdoor environments. It can lead to health issues like respiratory diseases and heart problems, and climate impacts such as global warming. Pollutants can damage plants, trees, habitats, and water bodies like rivers and lakes.

Zoning and spatial planning are both methods for guiding the distribution of people and activities in a space, and are regulatory restriction.

Work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for all, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity.

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

Any substance with chemical properties that can cause physical harm to people or damage the environment, including ammonia, carbon monoxide, phosphine, chlorine, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, pesticides, dioxins, microplastics, benzene, asbestos, aflatoxins, fluoride, methanol, and toxins from marine sources.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

Codes and standards are regulatory instruments that specify minimum standards to protect health and safety. This ranges from performance standards, which prescribe outcomes while allowing flexibility to achieve compliance, to the more prescriptive approach of technology-specific standards.