Conservation NGOs Urge European Commission to Adopt Ambitious Tyre Abrasion Rules

On Nov. 14, 2025, The Pew Charitable Trusts, the Environmental Coalition on Standards, the European Environmental Bureau, and the European Federation for Transport and Environment sent a joint letter to the European Commission calling for transparency, scientific integrity and ambitious reform in the ongoing United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) negotiations on the Euro 7 regulation to reduce tyre abrasion.

Tyre-wear particles are the second-largest source of microplastic pollution in Europe, with an estimated 360,000 to 540,000 tonnes released into the environment each year. Euro 7 is the EU’s first-ever legal framework to address the problem, a critical part of achieving the EU’s objective of reducing microplastic releases by 30% by 2030.

In the letter, Pew and its partners raised concerns that limited data transparency and informal technical work in the process to develop Euro 7’s test methods and abrasion limits could delay the regulation’s implementation, weaken its reforms and effectiveness and undermine trust in the effort. The organizations urged the European Commission to reassert its leadership over the negotiations by ensuring open access to data, mandating an independent scientific review by the Joint Research Centre and reinforcing proper governance under UNECE rules.

The letter reflects positions consistently expressed by Pew during recent UNECE meetings and underscores the importance of adopting scientifically credible, enforceable and environmentally effective abrasion limits that can deliver meaningful reductions within the required timeline. By acting now, the European Commission can help ensure that Euro 7 will contribute decisively to reducing microplastic pollution this decade.