Air Quality Action Planning
Back to Local Air Quality Management
What is Action Planning?
Action planning is the most important and significant aspect of the Local Air Quality Management Process. It provides the practical opportunity for improving local air quality in an area where the Review and Assessment has shown that national measures will be insufficient to meet the National Air Quality Standards by their respective target dates. After designating an Air Quality Management Area it is necessary to carry out further assessment work to identify the main sources of the air pollution and thus highlight where action is required. Once identified it is necessary to carefully assess the options and measures available to target these significant sources and thus improve the air quality locally.
The initiatives and schemes that can be used to improve air quality within Air Quality Management Areas are described in Chapter 7 of 'Breathing Space', the Council's local air quality strategy. Click on the link below to download a copy of the draft strategy document. Depending on the speed of your connection this could take a couple of minutes to load:
(In order to read pdf files you need the Adobe Acrobat Reader installed. This is a free download from the internet and can be accessed from our Downloads page)
Improving Air Quality - A Few Examples:
The UK's first scheme to charge motorists £2 for driving into a city centre has started in Durham.
Roadside fines are being introduced in Leicester to stop drivers whose cars pollute the city.
- Park & Ride / Cleaner Vehicles
Arriva operates Calor Autogas powered buses on an established park and ride route in Chester.
In certain circumstances all that may be required to ensure compliance with the National Air Quality Standards could be simple traffic light adjustments or redirecting certain types of traffic including heavy goods vehciles for example.
Action Plan Implications
Local authorities have to appraise and where possible quantify the wider environmental, economic and social consequences of each action plan option and package of options. It is important that action plans do not unduly or unfairly penalise local residents and businesses. Those measures that will achieve the necessary air quality improvement whilst incurring minimal disturbance and at acceptable costs will represent the first options that should be considered.
Local authorities do not need to wait for an Air Quality Management Area designation before initiating some of the action plan schemes to help improve air quality in areas that are subject to a level of air quality which, at the time, is close to, yet not beyond, any of the National Air Quality Standards. This will be achieved through the implementation of the actions within 'Breathing Space', the Council's local air quality strategy.
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