ROME - The smog that covers precious buildings around the Eternal City has decreased for the first time in 10 years, according to records released by the Regional Agency for the Environment. The vast numbers of mopeds, buses, and cars zooming around Rome have meant that air pollution in the city has been on the rise in recent years, contrasting Northern Italy which has seen a rapid increase in cycling enthusiasts. The effects of smog, whilst particularly bad for those suffering from asthma or smoking habits, can affect the eyes, lungs, and throats of all. 

 Environmental experts have seen a record decrease this year in the amount of polluting dust thrown into the air in Rome. They attribute the more widespread use of the hybrid car, and the hot Italian heat, as factors contributing to the cleaner air. On top of this, the government has introduced an initiative restricting polluting vehicles from the railway ring of the Capital, meaning that pollution shall be spread more widely across the country and no longer centralised.

 By law, Rome cannot have more than 36 days in a year where the fine polluting dust in the air reaches higher than the level of pm10 (50 micrograms in a metric cube). As reported in Il Messaggero, in 2007 Rome had 116 of such days, meaning that one in three days the air quality was illegally poor. 

 In 2017, Rome only suffered 21 days of polluted air over the legal limit - a win for environmental enthusiasts, and asthma and respiratory sufferers, in the Capital.