Environment group planning new Dutch clean air legal action

A Dutch environmental organization has launched a crowdfunding campaign to pay for new legal action aimed at forcing the Dutch government to do more to combat air pollution.

The Dutch branch of Friends of the Earth filed a case last year arguing that the government should do more to clean up the air. But a hearing has yet to be scheduled, so on Thursday the organization said it will now ask a court to order the government to take action before the case is heard.

Campaign leader Anne Knol says that "every day that we breathe polluted air is one too many."

Infrastructure and Environment Ministry Roel Vincken says the government already has improved air quality and is still working with local and provincial authorities to tackle remaining problems.

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