A/HRC/40/55 104. Many economists support putting fees or taxes on air emissions, thus implementing the polluter pays principle. A challenge is to ensure that the price on air emissions is high enough to produce substantial reductions, as affected businesses will raise competitiveness concerns. Another challenge is that different pollutants have different health and environmental impacts, so prices should be higher on emissions of more harmful substances. 105. Good examples include a tax in Chile on stationary sources of air pollution that is higher for facilities located in more densely populated areas and the national pollution tax in France that imposes higher taxes on more harmful air pollutants. 106. The Economic Commission for Europe Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution is an excellent example of regional cooperation. The Convention was signed in 1979, entered into force in 1983 and is now accompanied by eight protocols. Fifty-one parties from three continents have collaborated to set emission reduction targets, monitor compliance, build capacity and raise awareness. Sulphur dioxide emissions in the region have declined 70 per cent since 1990, while nitrogen dioxide emissions fell 40 per cent. 65 The 1999 Gothenburg Protocol to Abate Acidification, Eutrophication and Ground-level Ozone, as amended in 2012, is the first legally binding agreement containing obligations to reduce short-lived climate pollutants. 107. The Aarhus Convention and its Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers provide other examples of effective international instruments. The Aarhus Convention guarantees three key procedural rights (information, participation and access to justice) and promotes good practices as means of fulfilling the right to a healthy environment. 108. In response to problems caused by transboundary air pollution, Singapore created a programme in 2013 to subsidize medical treatment for air pollution-related illnesses experienced by vulnerable populations including children, the elderly and low-income residents. Approximately 100,000 people benefited from these medical subsidies. VI. Conclusions and recommendations 109. Given the devastating impacts of poor air quality on people’s lives, health and human rights, actions must be taken rapidly and systematically, with a priority focus on ameliorating conditions for the most vulnerable. Fulfilling the right to breathe clean air goes hand in hand with achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, including healthy lives for all, sustainable cities, universal access to clean energy and effective action to address climate change. A rapid shift away from fossil fuels to renewables such as solar and wind (except in the context of clean cooking, which often involves a shift to LPG) could save as many as 150 million lives over the course of the twenty-first century by reducing air pollution. 110. The failure to respect, protect and fulfil the right to breathe clean air is inflicting a terrible toll on people all across the world. The statistics presented in the present report depict a public health catastrophe, yet the numbers fail to capture the magnitude of human suffering involved. Each premature death, every illness and every disability afflicts an individual with hopes, dreams and loved ones. Air pollution is a preventable problem. The solutions − laws, standards, policies, programmes, investments and technologies − are known. Implementing these solutions will of course entail large investments, but the benefits of fulfilling the right to breathe clean air for all of humanity are incalculable. 111. In order to respect, protect and fulfil the right to breathe clean air, States must implement the seven steps outlined in paragraphs 63−78 (monitoring, source assessment, public information, air quality standards, action plan, implementation/enforcement and evaluation). States should review existing laws, 64 65 18 The regulation in revised annex VI to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) limiting the sulphur content of bunker fuel to a maximum of 0.5 per cent will enter into force on 1 January 2020. Economic Commission for Europe, Towards Cleaner Air: Scientific Assessment Report 2016, 2017.