Plymouth to declare city-wide AQMA to tackle air pollution

Plymouth Council is set to declare a city-wide Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) following the identification of elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide across three new areas. Currently there are two AQMAs in place in Plymouth, covering locations that have been identified as air pollution hotspots. However, three new areas have now been identified.

The current AQMAs are in place at Exeter Street and Mutley Plain as these locations tend to experience high levels of nitrogen dioxide as a result of heavy road traffic. The three new areas that have been identified as having poor air quality are Royal Parade, the Tavistock Road and Crownhill Road Junction, and the junction of Molesworth Road and Devonport Road in stoke.

On August 12th, the council's cabinet will hold a meeting, at which point it is expected the members will approve the plans for the implementation of a city-wide AQMA. This will cover all five areas that have been found to have increased levels of nitrogen dioxide.

The council has suggested that creating a single AQMA to cover all five areas with the same action plan will help to avoid individual schemes for the different areas impacting other locations in a negative manner. It also means the council will only be required to report on a single AQMA to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), rather than having to create five separate reports.

The decision to create a single AQMA is quite unusual, but it is hoped that it will help to drive down traffic emissions. In 2007, Exeter also created a single AQMA that covered the majority of traffic routes in the city with a view to improving air quality.

Councillor Brian Vincent, Plymouth City Council cabinet member for the environment, said: “This is a much more practical approach and will allow us to look at the city as a whole, rather than inadvertently shifting a problem elsewhere.

“As Britain’s Ocean City we enjoy a much cleaner air than other big cities – but there are hotspots where chemicals build.

“Many of us contribute to this by driving, but there are measures we can take as a city to reduce the levels of NO2, which can cause health conditions such as respiratory difficulties, asthma and heart disease. We need to tackle this as a city.”