Air quality: the data are improving, but 2030 remains an open challenge

The latest data released by Legambiente show an encouraging sign: in 2025, the number of Italian cities exceeding the daily PM10 limits has decreased. However, the overall picture remains far from reassuring. If the new European parameters expected for 2030 were already applied today, 53% of cities would still be above the limit for PM10.

This figure deserves attention because it clearly describes the moment we are living in: on the one hand, there are signs of improvement; on the other, it is equally clear that the path toward truly cleaner air will require structural, continuous, and coordinated action. The new European thresholds will be stricter and will make the need for technologies capable of reducing particulate emissions in a stable and lasting way even more evident.

When talking about air quality, public debate often focuses on traffic, urban heating, and mobility. But industry also has an important role to play in contributing to real and lasting improvement. In all contexts where dust management is a critical variable, the efficiency of abatement systems makes a difference not only from a regulatory perspective, but also from an environmental and operational one.

In this scenario, baghouse systems remain one of the most effective solutions for particulate control in industrial applications. However, it is not enough to simply “have a filter”: what matters is the quality with which the system has been designed and built. The choice of filter media matters, the quality of pulse-jet cleaning matters, the overall sealing of the system matters, and—less visibly but just as decisively—the quality of the filter bag cages matters as well.

A well-designed cage helps keep the bag in the correct operating configuration, reduces friction points, supports more uniform cleaning, and contributes to greater system stability over time. All of this has a direct effect on the overall performance of the filter: more regular operation, less media wear, fewer risks of performance decay, and, as a result, a stronger ability to keep emissions under control.

In light of the new European targets, this issue becomes even more important. If the margins become narrower, every component of the filtration system must help build reliability. It is not just a matter of meeting a limit, but of ensuring that the plant can do so continuously, consistently, and sustainably over time. This is where the concept of quality becomes strategic: a more stable filter is a filter that helps industry work better, with fewer unexpected events and greater confidence in meeting future environmental thresholds.

The message emerging from these data is therefore twofold. On the one hand, it shows that improvement is possible. On the other, it reminds us that 2030 is not far away and that the time available to adapt is not unlimited. In this path, industry is also called upon to do its part by investing in filtration solutions that are not only efficient “on paper,” but truly high-performing over the long term.

For CleanAir, this means continuing to develop components and solutions capable of supporting plants that are more reliable, more stable, and better prepared for the regulatory challenges of the coming years. In a context where air quality is becoming an increasingly sensitive indicator, industrial dust collection is not a minor technical detail: it is a concrete part of the solution.