London more than twice over air pollution limit, says ClientEarth

Greater London is more than twice over the legal limit for air pollution levels in the UK, according to a study. Charity ClientEarth says the UK is failing to meet the legal limits of nitrogen dioxide pollution, where the annual average concentration level is 40µg/m3 (micrograms per cubic metre of air). Findings show London’s annual mean concentration of 89 µg/m3 is followed by South Wales (62 µg/m3), West Midlands Urban Area (58 µg/m3), Glasgow Urban Area (58 µg/m3) and Tyneside (54 µg/m3). The study f
October 14, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

Greater London is more than twice over the legal limit for air pollution levels in the UK, according to a %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external study false https://www.clientearth.org/uk-air-pollution-how-clean-is-the-air-you-breathe false false%>.

Charity ClientEarth says the UK is failing to meet the legal limits of nitrogen dioxide pollution, where the annual average concentration level is 40µg/m3 (micrograms per cubic metre of air).

Findings show London’s annual mean concentration of 89 µg/m3 is followed by South Wales (62 µg/m3), West Midlands Urban Area (58 µg/m3), Glasgow Urban Area (58 µg/m3) and Tyneside (54 µg/m3).

The study follows figures released by the UK government which revealed that 83% of reporting zones still have illegal levels of air pollution.

These statistics are released as part of a legal requirement under the 1816 European Union Ambient Air Quality directive, in which all EU member states must report on levels of a number of pollutants to the 1690 European Commission.

ClientEarth’s clean air campaigns and policy manager Andrea Lee says: “Almost 10 years after legal limits should have been met, it is astounding that only seven out of 43 zones have legal levels of air pollution. This is not simply a failure by the government to comply with its legal duties but, most importantly, it is a failure to protect the health of people across the country from toxic air.”

“Local authorities clearly cannot deal with this matter on their own. We need leadership and action on a national scale,” Lee continues. “The government needs to sort this mess and act urgently to tackle this public health crisis. This needs to start with new clean air laws in the upcoming Environment Bill.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Ertico reveals new ITS event for 2020 in Russia
    September 17, 2019
    Ertico – ITS Europe has announced it is to hold the first-ever Central Eastern European Congress next year. Hosted by the city of Kazan, in south-west Russia, the event will focus on cooperation with Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (which comprises a number of countries formed after the break-up of the Soviet Union) and Central Eastern countries, says Ertico. It will take place in Kazan, Tatarstan on 21-24 September 2020 and there is a preview of the event in the city next month, on 3-4 Oct
    Read More
  • Karhoo unveils ‘roaming’ service with Taksee
    March 21, 2019
    Ride-hailing platform Karhoo and Taksee – a Spanish provider of taxi services to the corporate market – have launched what they call a ‘roaming’ service. Taksee is currently available via phone and app in Spain, and just via app in a number of other European cities, including London, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels and Rome. A Karhoo spokesperson told ITS International: “Taksee customers will be able to access taxis while they travel from country to country on the Taksee app. This will be facilitated by Ka
    Read More
  • Australia faces tough choices over toll tags
    September 12, 2014
    With more than seven million tolling tags nearing the end of their life, delegates to ITS Australia’s 2014 National Electronic Tolling Conference had more than a passing interest debating possible ways forward. Rex Wright, chair of the Australian Toll Road Users’ Group, said the industry was potentially facing an AUD$100million bill over the next five years but the toll operators are committed to a unified national approach, consistent with the current interoperability.
    Read More
  • ITS European congress – successful call for papers
    February 5, 2016
    The Call for Papers for the 2016 TS European Congress that has been very successful, say the organisers, with over 300 papers and more than 60 special interest session proposals around the five main topics. For those planning to exhibit or visit the congress, the organising team has arranged a special open day on 17 February to provide more information on the exhibition facilities, opportunities for sponsors and exhibitors and the congress format.
    Read More

Highlighted Content