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Air quality review, assessment and management areas


Air Quality Progress Report 2011

Air Quality Progress Report 2011 (PDF 657KB)

Progress Report 2010

Air Quality Progress Report 2010 (PDF 1.10MB)

Updating and screening assessment 2009

View updating and screening assessment 2009 (PDF 1.27MB)

Review and assessment of air quality

Under the Environment Act 1995 Local Authorities have a mandatory duty to undertake periodic reviews of air quality in their areas and to assess whether or not relevant air quality standards and objectives will currently be met, or are likely to be achieved by prescribed deadlines.

Local Authority review and assessment is a phased process involving three stages. Stage one of the process involves an assessment of air quality based on a series of indicators (e.g., presence of major roads, polluting industries or mining activity), which aims to identify in general terms the likelihood of poor air quality being present. If unsatisfactory air quality is considered a possibility either currently or in the future a more detailed second and third stage review must be undertaken. The outcome of the review and assessment process determines whether or not an air quality management area should be declared.

Air quality management areas in Walsall

In April 2002 Walsall completed its review and assessment of air quality which identified five areas unlikely to meet the air quality target for nitrogen dioxide specified in the Government's Air Quality Strategy 2000 by the objective date of 31 December 2005. Where a review and assessment identifies areas unlikely to meet an air quality objective the Local Authority must declare an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) in accordance with the requirements of the Environment Act 1995. Accordingly, this Authority has declared AQMAs in those areas unlikely to meet the air quality objective for nitrogen dioxide. (Maps showing these air quality management areas are contained within the nitrogen dioxide addendum report which can be downloaded below).

Update and screening of air quality 2003

View update and screening of air quality 2003 (PDF 624KB)

The Environment Act 1995 requires all Local Authorities to undertake regular assessments of air quality. The council is required to complete a second round of air quality reviews by April 2004. This involves a two-stage process of Updating and Screening Assessments (USA) followed by a Detailed Assessment if likely exceedences of the Government’s air quality objectives are identified.

The USA considers any changes in sources of pollution and public exposure since the 2002 review. Simple screening tools have been used to determine whether future pollution levels may exceed the Government's objectives. The report concludes that a Detailed Assessment will be required for lead, nitrogen dioxide and PM10.

Review and assessment of air quality

Stage 4 Review and Assessment of Air Quality May 2005 (PDF 1.7 MB)

Walsall Council is required to carry out detailed modelling in order to confirm its declaration under the Environment Act 1995 of five Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) associated with the M6 and other major roads. Consequently, Cambridge Environmental Research Consultants were commissioned to undertake this work across Walsall using traffic data for the major road network.

The council has also provided data for industrial processes likely to affect air quality within Walsall which has been used in conjunction with information from the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (NAEI).

Exceedances of the UK’s NO2 air quality objective have been predicted and these are shown as a contour plot for the areas of concern, which are broadly centred on the M6 corridor and main trunk roads. Modelling shows that the predicted areas of exceedance of the NO2 annual average Air Quality Objective extend outside the five original AQMAs.

Updating and screening assessment 2006

Updating and Screening Assessment 2006 (PDF 548KB)

As part of a three year cycle Local Authorities must produce an Updating and Screening Assessment (USA) for their areas. If the USA identifies places where air quality objectives are not likely to be met by a target date, it is then necessary for a Detailed Assessment to be undertaken for the given pollutant(s) and to possibly declare an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA).

Declaration of borough wide air quality management area 2006

Declaration of Borough Wide Air Quality Management Area 2006 (PDF 347KB)

In 2002 only specific parts of Walsall were declared as Air Qulaity Management Areas. Subsequent to reviewing data on Nitrogen Dioxide levels throughout the Borough of Walsall it has been decided to declare the whole of the Borough of Walsall as an Air Qulaity Management Area as it is unlikely that Government targets for Nitrogen Dioxide levels will be met.

Declaration of Chuckery air quality management area

Declaration of Chuckery Air Quality Management Area (PDF 90KB)

The Council declared an air quality management area in part of the Chuckery area of Walsall, where the national air quality management objective for particulate mater less than ten micros in size were unlikely to be met.

Detailed assessments of air quality

Other air quality reports:

Air quality review and assessment progress report

Contact us

Pollution Control
Engineering and Transportation Services
Walsall Council
2nd floor, Civic Centre
Darwall Street
Walsall  
WS1 1DG

Telephone 01922 653348
Fax 01922 623234
Email pollutioncontrol@walsall.gov.uk

This page was last updated on 05 December 2011