Agenda item

To receive a report summarising the outcomes of air quality monitoring activity during the past twelve months.

The Committee considered a report summarising a review of air quality across the Borough during 2021.

The annual Air Quality Review formed part of the Council’s statutory requirements in relation to Local Air Quality Management under Part IV of the Environment Act 1995. The report set out the results of air quality monitoring work, detailed the activities and strategies employed by the Council to improve air quality and reviewed the progress made in this area.  The Air Quality Annual Status Report would be submitted to DEFRA as part of the Council’s local air quality management responsibilities.  Due to the length of time that it took laboratories to analyse the results from monitoring stations the data for pollution levels in 2022 would be submitted to DEFRA in June, although some provisional data would be available earlier.

It was reported that during 2021 the Council had used passive diffusion tube monitors to monitor NO₂ at 51 locations across the Borough and monitoring of both NO₂ and PM10 was carried out though a continuous monitoring station at Castle Road adjacent to the M3.  Analysis of air quality monitoring results over the past eight years showed that NO₂ concentrations were below 40µg/m³  at all 51 diffusion tube monitoring locations.

In respect of the Castle Road monitoring site, the mean NO₂ concentration during 2021 was 30µg/m³  and there had been no occasions when the hourly mean NO₂ exceeded the objective value of 200µg/m³. Monitoring of PM10 during 2021 had found that levels were, at 14µg/m³,well within the 40µg/m³  air quality objective.  Analysis of daily exceedance results had shown that short term PM10 concentrations were also well below the objective of no more than 35 daily incidences of levels above 50µg/m³ in any one year.

Analysis of data from monitoring equipment in the vicinity of the temporary 50mph speed limit on the A331 between the Farnborough Road and the Coleford Bridge Road junctions showed that there had been a  small reduction, 1µg/m³, in NO₂ along the road following the imposition of the temporary speed reduction taking levels below the 40µg/m³ target limit.  Publication of DEFRA’s final report on the impact of the changed speed limits on pollution levels and next steps had been delayed from its original date of June 2022 and updates would be provided as they occurred.

It was confirmed that there were a number of monitoring stations in the vicinity of Frimley Park Hospital including at the hospital’s entrance, on Portsmouth Road and adjacent to the M3.  At the current time, there was no evidence to suggest that pollution exceeded approved limits.  It was agreed that this data would be circulated.

It was considered that the imposition of 20mph speed limits  in built up areas would have a limited impact.  Furthermore, the Borough was already measuring pollution levels that were below Government targets and consequently it was unlikely that reducing speed limits on pollution grounds would be possible.

It was agreed that a map showing the locations of all monitoring stations would be circulated.

The Group noted the report.