The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) may impose a million-dollar fine on Portugal, which has not yet been calculated, as a result of its systematic failure to comply with the European directive on air quality. This, according to the Portuguese press, is associated with around 6,000 premature deaths a year in the country, particularly in the cities of Lisbon, Porto and Braga.

Because of this environmental issue, the European Commission has opened 12 procedures that make it possible to impose fines.

In June 2023 the CJEU condemned Portugal for this reason for 10 years of persistent non-compliance.

In 2016, the CJEU imposed three million euros in fines for non-compliance with the urban wastewater treatment directive in several cities, with a further 8,000 euros for each new day of delay in complying with the directive.

In 2012, there were 1.9 million euros in penalties - now we're talking about the 2009-2018 period, with non-compliance continuing to the present day.

In addition to the fines, the negative impacts of pollution are felt in the local National Health Service, which spends around 1,150 euros per inhabitant every year in Lisbon and 950 in Porto.