Naples Leads Italy in Air Pollution for 2025, European Infraction Triggered by NO2 Levels
Naples, January 8, 2026 – The city of Naples has recorded the highest air pollution levels across Italy for the year 2025, with a staggering 295 total exceedances of atmospheric pollutant limits. This data, compiled and processed by ISDE Doctors for the Environment as part of their national project on health and atmospheric pollution in Italian cities, highlights a critical environmental and public health crisis in the Campanian capital. Following Naples, Milan registered 265 exceedances, and Palermo 248.
The most concerning aspect of Naples’ pollution record is the exceptional number of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) exceedances, reaching 197 in total. This figure significantly surpasses Palermo’s 173 and Milan’s mere 60 NO2 exceedances, and has directly led to a European infraction procedure against the Italian government.
Port Activities Identified as Primary Contributor to NO2 Surge
According to the ISDE Doctors for the Environment’s local chapter in Naples and its province – a summary signed by Marfella, Virgili, Costanzo, Amitrano, Santonicola, Napolitano, and Esposito – the record NO2 levels are primarily correlated with port activities. The national ISDE Project Aria, which analyzes official data from ARPA (Regional Agencies for Environmental Protection) in major Italian cities, clearly indicates that Naples, Palermo, and Messina exhibit NO2 excesses directly linked to their port operations, rather than other potential sources.
Specifically, the analysis of daily peak data points to the continuous operation of ferry engines to and from Sicily, which remain active due to the absence of electrification at the docks. Furthermore, ISDE doctors suggest that these vessels might be using “poor quality fuel,” exacerbating the emission problem.
Grave Health Implications for Naples’ Population
Antonio Marfella, president of ISDE Doctors for the Environment Naples and a specialist in pharmacology and toxicology, emphasized the severe health consequences of these NO2 excesses. He stated that these levels, which cannot be solely attributed to private diesel cars, are undoubtedly a major pathogenic co-factor for the serious health data characterizing Naples for decades. This includes not only an increase in cancer rates but also acute cardiovascular events, strokes, heart attacks, and debilitating conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, asthma, and autism in children. Marfella underscored the gravity of the situation in “the metropolis of Italy’s youngest region.”
The ISDE Naples doctors also highlighted the detrimental impact of uncontrolled and unsustainable “overtourism” on the city’s overall quality of life and air. They argue that these health data, with clear pathogenic correlations to pollution rather than “incorrect lifestyles” as some suggest, compound the already severe and unresolved issues linked to the “Terra dei Fuochi” phenomenon in Campania. Attempting to resolve these issues solely through secondary prevention (screening and early diagnosis) without addressing the root causes (primary prevention) only escalates the already unsustainable costs for the National Health Service, leading to overburdened general practitioners’ offices and hospital emergency rooms, and certainly not by increasing vaccinations.
NO2 Aggravates Influenza and Pneumonia, Weakens Immune System
The excess of nitrogen dioxide also intensifies influenza and pneumonia due to its potent irritant effect on the respiratory tract. It reduces pulmonary defenses and increases susceptibility to infections, worsening symptoms like coughing and shortness of breath, and elevating the risk of complications such as pulmonary edema, particularly in children, the elderly, and individuals with pre-existing conditions. NO2 compromises the immune system; chronic or acute exposure makes lung cells more vulnerable to pathogens (viruses, bacteria) and can inhibit the immune response, increasing the risk and severity of infections. As an irritant gas, it adds to virus-induced inflammation, leading to a worsening of cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, and respiratory difficulties. This severe and continuous irritation can lead to pulmonary edema, especially at high concentrations like those detected near the Port of Naples, and contribute to exacerbations of asthma and bronchitis. Vulnerable groups include children, the elderly, the frail, oncology patients, asthmatics, and individuals with chronic heart or respiratory disorders. Based on scientific literature and data collected over many years, prolonged exposure to nitrogen dioxide is associated with an increase in all-cause mortality, particularly from cardiovascular causes and respiratory diseases.
Urgent Appeal to Institutions for Action
ISDE doctors assert that “overtourism” in Naples is not only transforming the city into a “Disney-like theme park” as reported by The Telegraph, but also significantly impacting the general quality of life and air, which is already compromised, particularly by nitrogen dioxide from the port and intra-city airport, rather than private cars. They therefore urge all responsible authorities, including the President of the Region Roberto Fico, Mayor Gaetano Manfredi, Prefect Di Bari, and the President of the Order of Doctors Zuccarelli, to acknowledge these severe pollution data. They request an urgent institutional meeting to present their findings and push for immediate and essential governance interventions. These interventions, they stress, cannot be limited to merely blocking private diesel car traffic but must guarantee the electrification of the Naples Port docks, which is already foreseen and funded by the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan), within a definite and short timeframe. “No one should pretend not to know any longer,” they concluded.
