The air quality objectives are derived from air quality
standards based on the best available medical and scientific
understanding of the effect of individual pollutants on health.
Standards are concentrations below which significant risks to
public health are unlikely to occur.
Local Air Quality Management
The Environment Act 1995
requires local authorities to review and assess air quality in the
air quality in the district against the objectives. Where the local
authority considers that an objective is unlikely to be met then it
must declare an air quality management area where the problem has
been identified. It must then draw up an action plan explaining the
measure it will take in pursuit of the air quality
objectives.
The government have set out a timetable for the key stages of
the Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) process. The process has
been going on since 1998 and the timetable below shows the stages
from 2005.
|
LAQM Activity |
Completion Date |
Which Authorities? |
|
Updating & Screening Assessment (USA) |
End of April 2006 |
All authorities |
|
Detailed Assessment |
End of April 2007 |
Those authorities which have identified the need for one in
their April 2006 USA |
|
Progress Report |
End of April 2007 |
Those authorities which have identified that there was no need
for a detailed assessment in their April 2006 USA |
|
Progress Report |
End of April 2008 |
All authorities |
|
USA |
End of April 2009 |
All authorities |
|
Detailed Assessment |
End of April 2010 |
Those authorities which have identified the need for one in
their April 2009 USA |
|
Progress Report |
End of April 2010 |
Those authorities which have identified that there was no need
for a detailed assessment in their April 2006
USA |
We have worked with other local authorities in Shropshire to
produce the various documents described above.
We produced the first review and assessment report in December
2000. This examined emissions from traffic, industry and domestic
sources in accordance with guidance provided by the former
Department of Environment Transport and the Regions.
The report concluded that there was a likelihood of exceedences of
the nitrogen dioxide air quality objective at four separate areas
in Telford.
On 25 March 2002 the council made an
Air Quality Management Order declaring four
separate Air Quality Management Areas. It also required
Environmental Health to complete a further review of air quality
in those areas and to produce an action plan for each
area.
Stage 4 Review & Assessment of Air Quality
Review of
the stage 3 modelling of air quality in the borough, concluding
that the concentrations of the named pollutants were below the
objectives set by the Air Quality Regulations 2000.
Exceedences of the annual mean objective for nitrogen dioxide
(40 m g m-3 to be achieved by 31st December 2005) were
predicted to occur due to road traffic emissions in certain areas
within the Council area. As a result of the predicted exceedences
the authority was required to declare Air Quality Management
Areas:
- along the M54 motorway between Junctions 6 and 7;
- along the M54 motorway between Junctions 5 and 6;
- at Signet Drive (part), Stirchley; and
- at Britannia Way (part), Hadley.
In 2003 we undertook a further review and assessment of air
quality using revised monitoring, modelling and emissions
inventories (Stage 4). We concluded that concentrations of nitrogen
dioxide are confidently predicted to be below the annual average
air quality standard of 40 m g m-3 for the year 2005 at
each of the previously declared air quality management areas.
The order was subsequently revoked but it is included here for sake
of completeness.
Updating and Screening Assessment
2003
The updating and screening assessment (USA)
provides an update with respect to air quality issues within
SAQMG. There have been a number of changes since the last round
of review and assessments which have been taken into account in
this assessment including:
- a revised National Air Quality Strategy (2000) and Addendum
(2003);
- new Air Quality Regulations (2000 and 2002);
- new guidance documents LAQM.PG (03) and LAQM.TG (03);
- new vehicle emissions factors (2002); and
- updated information on likely background concentrations and
projection factors for future air quality.
The USA has included consideration of new emissions sources, in
addition to all existing emission sources previously identified in
the first round.
The USA considers the seven priority health based air quality
objectives as laid down in Regulations and assesses the likelihood
that the air quality objectives will be met by their target dates.
If the air quality objectives are unlikely to be met, a detailed
assessment will be required. The provisional PM10
objectives for 2010 have been considered briefly, although no
detailed assessment of the 2010 PM10 objectives is
required at this stage as the objectives have not been laid down in
Regulations.
Detailed Assessments 2004
The conclusions of the Updating
and Screening Assessment showed that:
- there was a potential to exceed the sulphur dioxide 15-minute
mean air quality objective with emissions from Ironbridge Power
Station; and
- there was a potential to exceed the nitrogen dioxide annual
mean air quality objective with emissions from road traffic in the
Ironbridge Gorge.
Detailed assessments of both sources were carried out and a
brief methodology and conclusions are given below. You will find a
link to the report at the end of each description.
Ironbridge Power Station
A review of the air quality
monitoring data for SO2 during 2004 and 2005 to date has
been carried out.
This, together with the fuel management strategy agreed with the
Environment Agency (EA), improved reporting links from the
monitoring stations back to the power station and advice received
from Department of Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA)
means that unless the number of yearly exceedences of the 15
minutes mean level of 266 µg/m3 actually breaches the Government
Objective of 35 permitted occurrences in 2005 then further action
is not necessary.
On this basis, it is not currently necessary for Borough of Telford
& Wrekin (BTW), Bridgnorth District Council (BDC) or Shrewsbury
& Atcham Borough Council (SABC) to declare Air Quality
Management Areas (AQMAs) for the pollutant Sulphur Dioxide
(SO2) from Ironbridge Power Station. However, SABC, BTW
and BDC will continue to review the monitoring results and liaise
closely with the EA who will enforce the Permit condition
regulating emissions from the power station requiring strict
compliance with the national air quality objective for
SO2 and with others designed to minimise emissions from
the installation.
Further review and assessment of air quality will be undertaken in
accordance with the timetable required by DEFRA's statutory local
air quality management Guidance to Local Authorities, including the
production of Progress Reports. Any necessary actions as a
consequence of this future work will be taken when required and
reported on.
Full details of the report can be found
here
Emissions from traffic in the Ironbridge Gorge
The council
installed a continuous monitor along the Wharfage Ironbridge to
provide real time monitoring data of nitrogen dioxide
(NO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions
from road traffic for six months.
Results of the annualised mean NO2 concentration
monitored at Ironbridge for 2004 is well below the annual mean
objective. There were no exceedences of the hourly objective during
the period.
Full details of the December 2005 report can be found on this
link.
Progress Report 2005.
Following consultation on the Local Air Quality Management (LAQM)
process, the Government concluded that it was too 'stop-start' and
that gaps of several years might occur between reviews when local
progress could falter. Therefore, Updating and Screening
Assessments are now required at intervals of three years whilst
Progress Reports maintain continuity and are to be produced in the
intervening years. The next Updating and Screening Assessment is to
be completed by April 2006. Progress Reports are designed to ensure
continuity in the LAQM process and are intended to assist local
authorities
The report was written jointly by the Shropshire consortium of
local authorities and lists details about Bridgnorth District
Council, North Shropshire District Council, Oswestry Borough
Council, Shrewsbury & Atcham Borough Council, South Shropshire
District Council and Borough of Telford & Wrekin.
The progress report contains the introduction
and details about changes that have taken place in the Borough
of Telford & Wrekin area. For details on the other
authorities findings please refer to their
websites. |