Air pollution - Accurate identification of activities and legislation which reduce the harmful effects.

E3: accurate identification of activities and legislation which reduce the harmful effects.

Air Pollution

Local authorities and corporate clients are responsible under a wide and growing range of legislation to manage air quality and pollution. As public and social awareness of the environment increases, the legislative requirements are becoming tighter.

Key legislation relating to air pollution and gas emissions includes:-

Town and Country Planning Regulations
Environment Act 1995
Environmental Protection Act 1990
Part 2a of the Contaminated Land Regulations

The Government and devolved administrations are committed to meeting people's right to clean air. It is essential for a good quality of life. People have a right to expect that the air they breathe will not harm them. We have come a long way since the smog’s of the 1950s. We have achieved cleaner air through regulating industry and progressively tightening emissions standards for vehicles. Air quality in the UK is now generally very good. But there are still sometimes unacceptably high levels of pollution that can harm human health and the environment.

In many countries in the world, steps are being taken to stop the damage to our environment from air pollution. Scientific groups study the damaging effects on plant, animal and human life. Legislative bodies write laws to control emissions. Educators in schools and universities teach students, beginning at very young ages, about the effects of air pollution.

The first step to solving air pollution is assessment. Researchers have investigated outdoor air pollution and have developed standards for measuring the type and amount of some serious air pollutants.

Scientists must then determine how much exposure to pollutants is harmful.

Once exposure levels have been set, steps can be undertaken to reduce exposure to air pollution. These can be accomplished by regulation of man-made pollution through legislation. Many countries have set controls on pollution emissions for transportation vehicles and industry. This is usually done to through a variety of coordinating agencies which monitor the air and the environment. At the , the carries out world wide environmental projects..

Prevention is another key to controlling air pollution. The regulatory agencies mentioned above play an essential role in reducing and preventing air pollution in the environment.

In addition, it is possible to prevent many types of air pollution that are not regulated through personal, careful attention to our interactions with the environment. In the UK, most household products come with instructions about safe use. Building materials should be reviewed for potential harmful effects.

Adequate ventilation is also a key to controlling exposure to indoor air pollution. Home and work environments should be monitored for adequate air flow and proper exhaust systems installed.

One of the most dangerous air pollutants is cigarette smoke. Restricting smoking is an important key to a healthier environment. Legislation to control smoking is in effect in some locations, but personal exposure should be monitored and limited wherever possible. There are many places now which have band smoking in public places.

When it comes to the environment, even the smallest individual action really does make a difference - and can benefit you too! There are many easy changes we can all make to our everyday lives to help protect and improve our environment - it just involves a little bit of extra thought about our day-to-day actions and how they impact on the environment.

Local pollution, such as car fumes, can aggravate asthma and cause premature deaths in those seriously ill. But you can help by, where possible, not using your car for short journeys, sharing car journeys with friends and family and having your car serviced regularly.

Pollution is also affecting the whole world. The burning of fuel in power stations and oil refineries provides you with the energy you use in your home and car. This burning of fuel also pumps out 'greenhouse gases' which cause global warming. In the UK this could mean more floods and storms, drier summers and wetter winters. You can do your bit to help the environment, and save money at the same time, by saving energy and resources.

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There are many things you can do as an individual to help reduce pollution levels and improve the quality of life for yourself, your family and others. Try to use your car less often - why not walk, cycle or use public transport? Cycling or walking is healthier for both the environment and you. You are exposed to much higher levels of air pollution inside a car than if you walked or cycled. Instead of driving a car to work, you could always cycle or use public transport.

You can ask your employer or college about developing a green ...

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You can ask your employer or college about developing a green travel plan, this might include travel card loans, cycle facilities or a car pool. Try not to use your car for short trips because a cold engine produces more pollution. Have your car serviced regularly so that it runs efficiently and does not pollute the air so much. If you have a diesel car try to use a cleaner fuel such as City Diesel as this produces less smoke than normal diesel fuel.

We can all adapt our lifestyles, and help to change any organisations we are involved with to respond to the air quality challenge.

Industry

Despite significant cuts in emissions from many sectors, industry is still a major source of some air pollutants. We must take the most appropriate and cost-effective measures for tackling pollution. The Environment

Agency in England and Wales, the Scottish Environment Protection

Agency (SEPA) and the Industrial Pollution and Radiochemical

Inspectorate of the Department of the Environment’s Environment and

Heritage Service in Northern Ireland has wide ranging powers to protect and manage the environment. They do this mainly by regulating industrial processes. In England and Wales, the Environment Agency and in Northern Ireland, the IPRI generally regulate larger industrial processes and local authorities regulate the smaller ones. In Scotland, SEPA regulates all processes.

Only through the efforts of scientists, business leaders, legislators, and individuals can we reduce the amount of air pollution on the planet. This challenge must be met by all of us in order to assure that a healthy environment will exist for ourselves and our children.

Clean Air Act 1993

Part I of the Act deals with controlling emissions of dark and black smoke from chimneys serving furnaces of fixed boilers or industrial plant. It also deals with emissions of dark smoke from industrial or trade premises caused by burning materials in the open.

Under Part II of the Act, no furnace or a fixed boiler in a building used for commercial activities can be installed without prior notification to the local authority. The furnace must be capable of operating continuously without emitting smoke using the fuel for which it is designed.

The Act requires certain types of furnaces, including those burning pulverised fuel (but excluding those covered under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and domestic furnaces), to be fitted with grit and dust arrestment plant approved by the local authority.

To avoid ground level air conditions becoming prejudicial to health or a nuisance because of chimney smoke, chimney heights from furnaces need to be approved by the local authority. As part of the approval process, an assessment is made of the final chimney height to avoid downdraught or downwash created by the chimney itself, by adjacent buildings or local topography.

But there are many clean solutions!

Offshore wind could easily replace all of the UK's nuclear power stations. Illegal and destructive logging could become sustainable forestry. And fossil fuels are unnecessary when the UK has such abundant renewable energy resources.

Methods for controlling air pollution include removing the hazardous material before it is used, removing the pollutant after it is formed, or altering the process so that the pollutant is not formed or occurs only at very low levels. Car exhaust pollutants can be controlled by burning the fuel as completely as possible, by recirculating fumes from fuel tank, carburettor, and crankcase, and by changing the engine exhaust to harmless substances in catalytic converters. Industrially emitted particulates may be trapped in cyclones, electrostatic precipitators, and filters. Pollutant gases can be collected in liquids or on solids, or incinerated into harmless substances.

Vehicle exhaust adversely affects the health of animals and plants and the chemical nature of the atmosphere.

This is why catalytic converters are installed in all newly made cars which are devices that reduce the exhaust pollutants produced by an automobile engine. The engine's combustion process gives off carbon monoxide and other harmful chemical compounds. A substance called a catalyst in the converter helps change these pollutants into safer substances. Every time you visit m.o.t people will check if your catalytic converter is working/safe.

The risk to healthy individuals is VERY SMALL at all levels of pollution likely to be experienced in the UK. People who suffer from a lung disease such as asthma should be able to manage their condition themselves by increasing their medication if they find that their condition deteriorates on days when pollution is high. Those who suffer from chronic chest diseases such as chronic bronchitis or emphysema may also be more sensitive to changes in air pollution. Some people with heart disease may also be more sensitive. Sufferers from these conditions should always seek medical advice if their symptoms change as it is unclear what proportion of patients or types of heart disease are involved. Patients with heart disease should not in general adjust their medication themselves and there is also a risk of alarming patients unnecessarily.

The pollution control service, they deal with a wide range of pollution e.g. smoke and odour. They authorise premises for pollution discharges, premises such as paint sprayers, and waste oil burners.

Monitoring of air quality has been undertaken by local authorities in the major urban centres for several years.

The air taken into the sampler is drawn first through a white filter paper, on which any smoke present leaves a deposit as a stain a; greater or lesser blackness. It then passes through a reagent solution which traps any sulphur dioxide present and converts it to sulphuric acid. After a week's sampling the seven sets of smoke stain and reagent bottle are brought to the laboratory for analysis.

The smoke is determined by measuring instrumentally the loss of reflectance of the once-white filter papers, the reflectance values being convened into equivalent smoke concentrations from a standard calibration graph. The sulphur dioxide is measured by careful titration of the very weak acid solutions, followed by calculation of the results.

They also monitor air quality throughout the district, using diffusion tubes and the air quality monitoring station. Contaminated land is a key project for the service, with the production of a contaminated land strategy.

Clean air for Europe

The European Commission has announced a 3-year investigation into how air quality can be improved and pollution related health problems reduced.

The 'Clean Air For Europe' (CAFE) Programme could lead to new legislation in 2004. Many of the existing air quality directives are due to be revised in 2004; the CAFE Programme will provide the framework for these new air quality standards and emission ceilings.

In particular, the CAFE Programme will focus on fine particulate matter, ground level ozone, acidification and the over nitrification of watercourses.

Part of the Government’s plans to ensure a better quality of life is Indicators of Sustainable Development. measures the average number of days per site on which pollution levels were above National Air Quality Standards. The Standards represent defined levels which avoid significant risks to health. As levels increase above the Standard, the likelihood of effects on health increases. For example, levels of ozone in the 'high' band may cause cough and discomfort on deep breathing during exercise in some people.

The graph below shows how the indicator figure has changed over the period 1987 - 2002. There is clearly a steady improvement in urban areas with a downward trend in the number of days with pollution levels above the Standards. For rural areas there is no clear trend, mainly because the pollutant causing most problems is ozone, the government is working at international level to reduce emissions of the pollutants which lead to ozone formation.

Headline Indicators of Sustainable Development

H10 Air quality

Objective: Reduce air pollution and ensure air quality continues to improve through the longer term

Indicator: Days when air pollution is moderate or higher,

Final figures for 2002 show continued improvement in urban air quality since 1993, although there can be some variation from year to year due to the weather. There were 20 days of moderate or higher air pollution on average per urban site in 2002 compared with 59 days in 1993. In 2002, there were 30 days of moderate or higher air pollution on average in rural areas. Rural pollution depends mainly on ozone levels which can vary widely, and there is no clear long term trend.

Environment act 1995.

On 1st April, 1996, the offence provisions in the Control of Pollution Act, 1974 were replaced by Section 30F of the Environment Act 1995.

All district and unitary authorities have a duty to review air quality in their area; This should include the likely future air quality within the relevant period (by 2003 to 2008) and an assessment of whether air quality standards and objectives are being achieved or likely to be achieved measured against the National Air Quality strategy. Any part of the authority’s area in which standards or objectives will not be met by the prescribed date should be designated an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA). The authority will then be required to develop a local action plan which sets out measures to reduce pollution levels.

The Environment Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) are required to take account of the Strategy in carrying out their pollution control functions (section 81). The Environment Act also places the same obligation on local authorities.

If it appears to the Secretary of State that a local authority is not meeting its obligations under sections 82-84 of the Act, the Secretary of State may direct the local authority to:

Arrange for air quality reviews to be carried out as specified
Arrange for a new air quality review to be carried out
Revoke or modify an Order made under section 81 of the Act
Prepare or modify its action plan or to implement any of the measures in its action plan.

The Secretary of State may also direct local authorities to take account of European or international commitments in their action plan.

County Council Functions

This applies to those districts in England covered by a district council which are also in an area comprising a county council.

The relevant county council may make recommendations to the district council with regard to the district council’s obligations under this part of the Act.

Where the district council is preparing an action plan, the county council should also submit proposals, together with a statement outlining the timescale, for meeting air quality standards and objectives within the designated area.

Air Quality Management Strategies

Air quality management (AQM) covers the entire process of assessing and tackling air quality problems, from identification of poor air quality through to formulation and execution of a remediation strategy. Assessment of the problem will include identification of significant sources of air pollution - such as traffic, industry, households, commerce or agricultural - together with ‘hotspots’ or areas of elevated pollutant concentrations.

Once hotspots are identified, along with the contributing sources, it is possible to evaluate the options for controlling the emissions in such a way so as to improve air quality to an acceptable level.

The Environmental Protection Act 1990

To prevent the pollution from emissions to air, land or water from scheduled processes the concept of integrated pollution control has been introduced.

Control of pollution to air from the less heavily polluting processes is through the local authority.

In addition to extending the Clean Air Acts by including new measures to control nuisances, the Regulations introduce litter control; amend the Radioactive Substances Act 1960; regulate genetically modified organisms; regulate the import and export of waste; regulate the supply, storage and use of polluting substances and allow the setting up of contaminated land registers by the local authority. In 1991 the Water Act 1989 that controlled the pollution and supply of water was replaced by five separate Acts.

The Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations) 1983

These regulations cover all work involving asbestos insulation and asbestos coating and relate to any material containing asbestos that is used for thermal, acoustic or other insulation purposes including fire protection. Asbestos cement and asbestos board are outside these regulations. Every operator undertaking work involving listed types of asbestos materials must possess a licence issued by the HSE.