Agenda item

To receive a briefing in respect of Air Quality Management Areas following their recent extension.

The Panel received a briefing in respect of the two areas within the Borough designated as Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) following the Executive’s decision to amend their boundaries.

The Council declared two areas within the Borough as AQMAs in February 2011, which fulfilled the Council’s statutory obligations under the Environment Act 1985 and the Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) Framework.

AQMAs needed to be declared where air quality monitoring had shown that there was, or likely to be, an exceedance of the annual mean objectives for certain pollutants. In the case of the two areas declared, the pollutants were Nitrogen Dioxide, which arose from vehicle emissions.

Health effects of air pollution, such as asthma, respiratory problems, heart problems, and premature death, had been widely documented. Air pollution had a £20 million estimated cost and could cut life expectancy by 7-8 months. High pollution incidents were rare in the UK and in Bracknell Forest.

Under legislation there was a Statutory Duty, Part IV of the Environment Act 1995, to review and assess air quality. Trigger levels for Nitrogen Dioxide were measured at an annual level; other pollutants were not measured in Bracknell Forest as they were not an issue. There were reports annually, run by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and information could be found on the Borough Council’s website. Detailed assessments were undertaken if trigger levels were exceeded, and further assessments were undertaken for a more in-depth review of local AQMAs.

There were 42 tube readers across the Borough which continuously monitored air quality every 15 minutes. The tubes were at a level where a person would be inhaling air. Many tubes had been placed at private residences and in the event of vandalism tubes would be placed in different areas. Tubes were removed, replaced and analysed for air quality monitoring purposes on a monthly basis

The speed humps in Crowthorne had been replaced with speed cushions and it was hoped that this would help to improve the air quality in this area with less stop/start of vehicles. A 50% reduction in Nitrogen Dioxide was needed and AQMA boundaries had been extended. New developments could be an issue in regard to the impact on air pollution and officers would be involved at the planning stage to consider this. An air quality action plan was being drafted which would fit under the Local Transport Plan 3.

In response to Members’ questions, the following points were made:

• Every month results were retrieved from the tube locations and a consultant was undertaking work on the data to produce an annual figure.
• Air quality monitoring in Crowthorne was temporary. The trigger level was 40 and the annual level in this area was 26, so there were no immediate concerns regarding this area.
• The shape of AQMAs may change with the redevelopment of the town centre and air pollution levels in the town centre area would be monitored.
• The Borough Council was in discussion with health colleagues with a view to building in links to integrate with public health.
• The Council could consider establishing low emission zones although charging for entry into such zones would be an issue. Technology was progressing and there were cleaner and greener fuels available; even with the expected increase in visits to the town centre from 2 million to 9 million air pollution may not reach trigger level.
• There were no known health risks at current air pollution levels recorded in Bracknell Forest.