Britain ordered to reduce its air pollution by the European Court of

Justice and threatened with a 300million fine for not complying

Ministers must urgently tackle Britains abysmal air pollution, the European Court of
Justice ruled yesterday.
The UK has repeatedly failed to meet clean air targets, leaving most of our cities
clogged with pollution that is estimated to kill 29,000 people a year.
The European court yesterday found that the UK was in breach of EU law and
should have created plans to tackle air pollution in 16 cities by January 2015 at the latest.
Under existing plans, the worst areas - including London, Birmingham and Leeds would not meet the pollution limits until 2030, campaigners say.
Britain breached EU targets in 2010 for levels of nitrogen dioxide, a gas particle
from car engines and factories which causes breathing and heart problems.
It is still nowhere near adequate levels, and has repeatedly asked to be granted
extensions to the EU deadline.
The European court, which is based in Luxembourg, ruled that the UKs Supreme
Court now has jurisdiction over the matter and must order the Government to take action
to meet the legal limits in a much shorter time frame.
The Government is also facing a separate 300million fine for failing to meet the
EUs air quality directive on pollution.
Some 16 areas including Greater London, Greater Manchester, Glasgow, Sheffield
and the West Midlands are currently in breach of the targets.
The problem was dramatically illustrated in April when a thick smog enveloped the
country, forcing people to stop exercising and schools to keep their children inside.
Environmental lawyers ClientEarth, who brought the case against Defra, the
Governments environment department, said the ruling is likely to mean rolling out
Londons planned ultralow emissions zone to cities across the country.
The plan, drawn up by Boris Johnson, will mean charging diesel car owners 10 to
enter the city centre and scrapping old taxis.
ClientEarth lawyer Alan Andrews said: Thousands of people die because of air
pollution every year. This ruling will save lives by forcing the Government to finally take this
issue seriously.
Shadow environment secretary Maria Eagle said: This European Court of Justice
judgement is a damning indictment of the Tory-led Governments total failure to tackle the
UKs air pollution.
Air pollution is a serious public health issue facing our towns and cities, tens of
thousands of lives are lost each year and yet David Camerons government has done
nothing to solve the problem.
The European Court of Justice has now demanded that the UK take urgent action
to address dangerous levels of air pollution.
Maura Gillespie, of the British Heart Foundation, said: This judgement means the
UK Government is finally being held to account for their breach of air pollution limits.

Breathing certain pollutants is proven to exacerbate existing heart conditions and

put vulnerable people at greater risk of a heart attack.
The public expect the air we breathe to be safe. Officials must act now to improve
the quality of the air we breathe.
And Friends of the Earth Campaigner Jenny Bates said: UK air quality is a national
disgrace - tough measures are long overdue.
The ruling came as the European Environment Agency published its latest annual
air quality report, which showed that almost a fifth of people living in British cities are
exposed to nitrogen dioxide levels up to 50 per cent above EU limits.
MP Joan Walley, chair of the parliamentary Environmental Audit Committee, added:
Ministers have complacently carried on with business as usual and put off serious efforts
to deal with the problem for another decade.
It is not acceptable for ministers who live in leafy suburbs to tell people living next
to busy roads in towns and cities that they have to wait until 2030 to breath clean air.
A Defra spokesman said: Air quality has improved significantly in recent years and
average roadside concentrations of NO2 levels have fallen 15 per cent since 2010.
We have built on this by committing 2 billion since 2011 to increase the uptake of
ultra-low emission vehicles, green transport initiatives and supporting local authorities to
take action.
SOURCE: Daily Mail Online (www.dailymail.co.uk)

Air pollution 'causing deadly public health crisis'

New schools, care homes and hospitals should be built far away from major
roads because of the dangers of air pollution, a report by MPs says.
The Environmental Audit Committee argues air pollution is a "public health crisis"
causing nearly as many deaths as smoking.
It also suggested a scrappage scheme for diesel cars to cut emissions.
The government said it was "investing heavily" in clean air, but campaigners said it
was ignoring the issue.
There are an estimated 29,000 deaths annually in the UK from air pollution.
Nitrogen dioxide is known to cause inflammation of the airways, reduce lung
function and exacerbate asthma.
Particulate matter - tiny invisible specks of mineral dust, carbon and other chemicals
- are linked to heart and lung diseases as well as cancer.
Some particulate matter lodges in the lungs, while the finest particles can enter the
bloodstream, risking damage elsewhere in the body.
Joan Walley, the committee chairwoman, told the BBC: "There is a public health
crisis in terms of poor air quality.
"There are nearly as many deaths now caused by air pollution as there are from
smoking, so the main thing is we stop a new generation of children being exposed."
She said government "should make it impossible" for new schools, care home or
health clinics to be built in pollution hotspots.
She added that "well over a thousand" schools were already near major roads and
that it "made sound economic sense" to filter the air coming into the buildings.
The committee's report says traffic is responsible for 42% of carbon monoxide, 46%
of nitrogen oxides and 26% of particulate matter pollution.
It said government had promoted diesel vehicles as they produced less of the
greenhouse gas carbon dioxide.
But the committee said diesel was now seen as "the most significant driver of air
pollution in our cities".
They called for government to pay for diesel drivers to upgrade their engines or for
a national scrappage scheme to take the most polluting vehicles off the road.
Other measures suggested include:
The Met Office and BBC producing high pollution forecasts alongside ones for pollen and

UV.
A national plan for "low emission zones" to tackle heavily polluting vehicles, like the one
in London.
Changes to fuel duty to encourage low nitrogen dioxide vehicles as well as low carbon
dioxide.
Financial incentives for alternative fuels.
Encourage walking and cycling as the "ultimate low emission" option
Dr Ian Mudway, a lecturer in respiratory toxicology at King's College London, told
the BBC: "The evidence is there. The 29,000 figure is very solid, so really it is a case of
acting.
"But it is a strange one, because it's their third [report] in five years and it is an
attempt to get the government to do anything."
The British Lung Foundation said the recommendations "may seem drastic", but air
pollution was so bad they were necessary "to protect the nation's health".
"Our dirty air will simply not clean itself, and this issue is one that will, without the
government's intervention, continue to impact on current and future generations," said Dr
Penny Woods, the charity's chief executive.
Asthma UK said air pollution increased the risk of a life-threatening attack and
"urgent and concerted action" was needed to bring pollution levels down.
Chief executive Kay Boycott said: "In the short term some of the measures
recommended in this report, such as the publicising of high air pollution forecasts, could
help people with asthma know in advance if they should seek advice from their GP or
asthma nurse."
Simon Gillespie, the chief executive of the British Heart Foundation, said: "The
government cannot continue to ignore this issue.
"Enough is enough. The government must act on these recommendations quickly if
we are to improve the quality of the air we breathe and protect the nation's heart health."
A government spokesperson said there would be a full response to the report in the
future, but added: "Clean air is vital for people's health and, while air quality has improved
significantly in recent decades, we are investing heavily in measures across government to
continue this, committing 2bn since 2011 in green transport initiatives."
SOURCE: British Broadcasting Corporation (www.bbc.co.uk)