Air Quality and Pollution Control

Monitoring Air Quality in South Cambridgeshire

Visit our Air Quality website (This link will open in a new window) for information about the causes of poor air quality and what is being done about it, and also find out what the air pollution is like today, over the previous week and even over previous years.

Our latest report, the Detailed Assessment of Particulate Matter (PM10) is now available to download.

What is air?

Air is one of the essential components of life. It is a mixture of gases and small particles which vary in composition.

Pie chart showing the main components of air

Pie chart showing main components of air

The balance of these gases is affected by man's activities and it is when this balance is shifted or the air contains a substance which may be harmful to health or the environment that it is termed 'polluted'.

Many people think that air pollution is restricted to outdoor air but it can also be a problem indoors both at home or at work when ventilation is inadequate. (For workplace, see Health & Safety).

Common pollutants and their health effects

POLLUTANT	SOURCE	EFFECT
Benzene	Motor vehicle exhausts & petrol evaporation	Human carcinogen
1-3 Batadiene	Motor vehicle exhausts & chemical industrial processes.	Human carcinogen
Carbon Monoxide	Incomplete combustion of organic materials. (Carbon containing) Wood, coal, oil, gas. Outdoors: vehicle exhausts, heating appliances. Indoors: smoking, heaters (unvented).	Reduces the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood leading to headache, nausea, vomiting, eventually collapse and death.
Lead	Outdoors: Motor vehicle exhausts. Indoors: may be present in water pipes and/or old paint.	Cumulative effects on the nervous system which may impair children's intelligence and concentration.
Nitrogen Dioxide	Combustion of fossil fuels, road vehicles power generation, industrial processes. Indoors: unvented gas cookers and other appliances.	Throat and eye irritation (also involved in photochemical smog formation.)
Ozone	Product of chemical reaction between other pollutants (Nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbons in the presence of sunlight.)	Running eyes, throat irritation, breathing difficulties.
PM10 (particles less than 10 micrometres in diameter)	Combustion processes and natural sources such as dust, diesel and smoke.	Small particles can penetrate deep into the lungs and cannot be expelled. They may cause irritation and/or carry with them toxic or carcinogenic substances.
Sulphur Dioxide	Domestic and industrial burning of coal.	Irritation of the nerves in the nose, throat and airways. May also lead to constriction of the airways.
Asbestos	Building material, wall cladding, insulation, brake linings. Exposure usually indoors during building work and car maintenance.	Scarring of the lung and increased risk of lung, chest and abdominal cancer.
Volatile Organic Compounds, e.g. Formaldehyde	paints, varnishes, glues and preservatives used in wood products. Foam insulation. Exposure indoors during decoration or construction.	Breathing difficulties, eye and skin irritation, nausea and dizziness.
Radon	Rocks which contain naturally occurring radioactive material emit Radon gas.	Increased risk of lung cancer.
Cigarette Smoke: Nicotine, tar, formaldehyde, oxides of nitrogen and Carbon Monoxide.	Smoking:	Eye, throat and lung irritation. Increased liability to respiratory illness. Increased risk of lung cancer. Non-smokers breathing in others' smoke are also at risk.
Micro-organisms and allergens	Biological contaminants, moulds, spores, viruses and bacteria.	Pneumonia-like respiratory illnesses, allergic reactions.

Indoor Air Pollution

Indoor air pollution can only be controlled by the householder, but may be improved by increasing ventilation. However, if you are concerned about radon, asbestos or other building materials contact the Environmental Health Department.

Outdoor Air Pollution

Outdoor air pollution is being tackled by a number of agencies, under a range of legislation, briefly discussed below.

Industrial Emissions

The Environmental Protection Act 1990, Part 1 established two control systems: An air pollution control system enforced by local authorities in England and Wales and by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in Scotland (referred to as 'local enforcing authorities'), and an integrated pollution control system enforced by the Environmental Agency in England and Wales and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in Scotland.

For information on IPC processes contact The Environment Agency, Howard House, 40-64 St John's Street, Bedford MK42 0DL Telephone (01234) 277043. Further information can be found on the Environment Agency at their website. Click on the link below to go there now:

The Environment Agency (This link will open in a new window)

The powers given to local authorities (district and borough councils) under part 1 of the Act superseded their powers under the Clean Air Acts 1956 and 1968 (now consolidated into the Clean Air Act 1993) and their statutory nuisance powers under part III of the Environmental Protection Act in relation to prescribed processes.

Main Features of the Local Air Pollution Control System (LAPC)

Prescribed processes designated for local control must not be operated without an authorisation from the local enforcing authority in whose area they are located. Mobile plant must be authorised by the local enforcing authority in whose area the operator has his principle place of business.
Operators of prescribed processes must submit a detailed application for authorisation to the enforcing body.
Local Authorities are statutorily obliged to include conditions in any authorisation they issue which are designed to ensure that the process is operated using the Best Available Technology Not Entailing Excessive Cost (BATNEEC) to prevent and minimise emissions of prescribed substances and to render harmless any substance that may be emitted.
In addition to any specific conditions included in an authorisation, all authorisations implicitly impose a duty on the operator to use BATNEEC in relation to any aspect of the process that is not covered by the specific conditions.
Secretary of State process guidance notes (PGs) have been issued on all main categories of process coming under local enforcing authority control.
Operators can appeal against refusal of an application, against the conditions included in an authorisation, and against the various forms of notice that may be served by a local enforcing authority.
Local authorities can issue enforcement, variation, prohibition and revocation notices to ensure that appropriate standards of control are met, and raised in line with new techniques and new awareness of environmental risk. Prohibition notices are a mechanism for stopping a process if there is an imminent risk of serious pollution to the environment.
All applications for authorisation (except in relation to small waste oil burners and mobile plant) must be advertised locally and full details (except information that is commercially confidential or would prejudice national security) must be made available so that the public can comment before the process is authorised to start operation or to undergo a substantial change.
Public registers are available from the Environmental Health department (contact details at bottom of page) giving details of all IPC and local enforcing authority air pollution control processes in this area.
Local Authorities are obliged to levy fees and charges in accordance with a scheme prescribed by the Secretary of State. The scheme is reviewed annually.
Local authorities have powers of entry, inspection, sampling, investigation and seizure of articles or substances which are a cause of imminent danger of serious harm.

The Environment Act 1995 Part V

This act introduced a new legislative framework for local air quality management in adopting objectives to be achieved by the year 2005 as set out in the National Air Quality Strategy. These objectives are detailed below.

Substance	Air Quality Objective Levels
Benzene	5 ppb or less, when expressed as a running annual mean
1,3-Batadiene	1ppb or less, when expressed as a running annual mean
Carbon Monoxide	10ppm or less, when expressed as a running 8 hour mean
Lead	0.5 micrograms per cubic metre or less, when expressed as an annual mean
Nitrogen Dioxide	150 ppb or less when expressed as an hourly mean, and 21 ppb or less, when expressed as an annual mean
PM10	50 micrograms per cubic metre or less when expressed as the 99th percentile of daily maximum running 24 hour means
Sulphur Dioxide	100 ppb or less, when expressed as the 99.9th percentile of 15 minute means

Interpretation
For the purposes of this schedule:
1. 'ppb' means parts per 1000 million by volume.
2. 'ppm' means parts per million by volume.
3. 'PM10' means the mass fraction of particles which if inhaled would penetrate beyond the larynx.

The Air Quality Regulations 1997

These regulations placed a duty on local authorities to review and assess air quality by:

Having regard to levels now and in the future.
Make an assessment of whether those levels estimated for 2005 will exceed the objectives as outlined above.
In doing so, have regard to all locations where individuals are likely to be exposed over the averaging time of the objective.
Identify areas where the objectives will not be met by national measures alone.
Develop air quality management plans for those areas where the objectives will not be met.
Liaise with public and private bodies in drawing up those plans.
Consult with the local community and all other interested parties.
Allow access to information.
Develop a strategy for managing local air quality ensuring that air quality considerations become an integral part of the Local Authority decision-making process.

Monitoring Air Quality in South Cambridgeshire

The Environmental Health Department have several monitoring projects which are on-going.

Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2)

Twelve sites across the district using diffusion tubes to measure monthly average concentrations of Nitrogen Dioxide. Four locations, all in Histon, are part of the UK Nitrogen Dioxide Survey which looks at the variation of NO2 concentration across the country at sites categorised as kerbside, intermediate and background. Other NO2 monitoring sites are situated in Tadlow, Harston, Girton, Milton, Sawston, Linton and two further locations in Histon.

Ozone

Monitoring during the summer period only, and in conjunction with the other District Councils in Cambridgeshire. Diffusion tubes provide data as two week means. Data is available from 1995 for Tadlow, Boxworth, Willingham and West Wickham.

PM10

Monitoring of particulates had been ongoing since July 1997 at a site adjacent to the A14. Data was collected as a single mean value every 24 hours using partisol equipment. The final PM10 report is now available to download.

Sulphur Dioxide

Continuous monitoring giving 15 minute averages of Sulphur Dioxide is being carried out in Barrington to investigate the possible impact of localised emissions.

Radon

One hundred properties within the National Grid square TL7035 are being monitored for indoor concentrations of radon. This action is in response to the National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) mapping estimate that 1-3% of houses in this 5 kilometre square have levels of radon above the Government action level of 200Bgm -3. Results are expected later this year. Further information may be obtained from ourselves or the NRPB, Chilton, Didcot, Oxfordshire CX1 10RQ. Tel: (0800) 614529 or click on the link below to send an e-mail. Address your correspondence 'Radon Survey'.

radon@nrpb.org.uk

Further information on the work of the NRPB can be found at their website. To go there now, click on the link below.
NRPB (This link will open in a new window)

Air Quality Information in South Cambs

Links to Other Air Quality Websites

Below are some links to other air quality websites that may be of interest. Click on the link to go directly to the site.

South East Institute of Public Health - www.seiph.umds.ac.uk (This link will open in a new window)
The Meteorological Office (Air Quality Forecasts) (This link will open in a new window)
National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory : www.naei.org.uk (This link will open in a new window)

Protect your environment. You can report HGV diesel vehicles with smoky exhausts to the Hotline (Tel: 0116 276 2411)

Contact Environmental Health - If you have any queries on the work of The Environmental Health Department on pollution control or air quality, contact:

Susan Walford
Scientific EHO
(01954) 713124 or susan.walford@scambs.gov.uk.

Environmental Health Department
South Cambridgeshire District Council
South Cambridgeshire Hall
Cambourne Business Park
Cambourne
Cambridge
CB23 6EA