Air quality in Sydney deteriorated in 2009, report shows

Sydney's air quality was considerably worse in the last financial year than in the previous 12 months, a new report has revealed.

According to the Daily Telegraph, there were 37 days of "poor air quality" in the city, compared with 19 the year before.

The 2008 figures also represented a substantial increase compared with 2007, the publication reported, indicating that Sydney's air quality is progressively deteriorating.

In a response to the state opposition, the New South Wales government claimed that the weather was a contributing factor.

"Seasonal variation in weather is a major influence on air quality, especially in the formation of summer-time photochemical smog," the government stated.

However, spokesperson for the opposition Catherine Cusack called on the government to do more to tackle increasing congestion and issues with public transport around the city.

"The health costs in the Sydney basin are well over AU$4 billion (£2.26 billion) so it's both socially and economically irresponsible to dismiss these astronomical costs," she told the newspaper.

Air quality monitoring is carried out at 19 sites across the city by the Department of Environment and Climate Change, with levels of pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide among those recorded on a daily basis.

Posted by Lauren Steadman