§ Norman BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what monitoring arrangements are in place for air pollution across the United Kingdom; and how this information is publicised. [85845]
§ Alun MichaelOn behalf of the United Kingdom Government and the devolved Administrations DEFRA monitors air pollution in the United Kingdom through a national network of air quality monitoring sites, the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory and numerical modelling techniques.
There are three national automatic air quality monitoring networks: (a) the automatic urban network consisting of 96 sites, (b) the automatic rural network consisting of 22 sites and (c) the hydrocarbon network consisting of four sites. There are also seven national non-automatic networks that measure a wide range of pollutants. DEFRA operates two of these networks in co-operation with local authorities.
Current and historic monitoring information, including hourly updates of air quality from the automatic networks, is published on the UK Government's and the devolved Administrations' air quality website (www.airquality.co.uk). This site also provides detailed information about DEFRA's and the devolved Administrations' air pollution monitoring arrangements. Air quality information is also provided through a freephone service (0800 556677) and on Teletext, page 155.
In addition to the national monitoring networks described above, there are also a large number of monitoring sites operated by local authorities. Local authorities generally publicise this information in the air quality review and assessment reports, which they prepare under part IV of the Environment Act 1995.
§ Norman BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to which local authorities since 1997 her Department and its predecessors have issued directions requiring air quality monitoring to be undertaken. [85841]
§ Alun MichaelThe Secretary of State has not issued any directions under part IV of the Environment Act 1995 to local authorities requiring air quality monitoring to be undertaken.
The Department offers advice on air quality monitoring to local authorities via centrally funded helpdesks and our statutory local air quality management guidance.
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§ Norman BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment. Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the individual measures against which air quality is assessed in the United Kingdom what the level of each was in(a) each city of greater than 100,000 population and (b) each local authority area in each of the last 30 years in which these have been recorded. [85846]
§ Alun MichaelAir quality in the United Kingdom is assessed against targets for safeguarding people's health and protecting the environment from air pollution. These targets were published in the Air Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, first published in 1997 and revised in January 2000. The strategy includes health-based standards for benzene, 1,3-butadiene, carbon monoxide lead particles, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and low-level ozone. It also includes policy objectives for each pollutant to be achieved between 2003 and 2008. On 5 August 2002 the United Kingdom Government announced tighter objectives in England for particles, benzene and carbon monoxide and introduced a new objective for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
The United Kingdom Government and the devolved Administrations monitor levels of the pollutants in the United Kingdom through a national network of air quality monitoring sites, the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory and numerical modelling techniques. Details the air quality targets and all air quality monitoring data—including cities and local authorities—are published on the United Kingdom Government's and devolved Administrations air quality website www.airquality.co.uk