Agenda item

Report of the Head of Highways and Public Protection

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Highways and Public Protection that updated on air quality management and recent air quality developments in Sefton.

The report indicated that Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) was introduced under the Environment Act 1995, that evidence had shown that certain atmospheric pollutants were linked to poor health and that the Act placed a statutory duty on all Local Authorities to review and assess air quality in their areas at regular intervals; that arising from National Air Quality Standard (NAQS) Objectives 2 pollutants, Nitrogen Dioxide and Particulate Matter PM10 were still of concern in Sefton; that the ongoing review and assessment process had confirmed that in most of Sefton Air Quality was of a good standard and complied with the NAQS objectives; but that four localised areas in South Sefton had been identified where levels of Nitrogen Dioxide had exceeded or were close to the annual average standard of 40 µg/m3. Accordingly, Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) had been declared in the four locations at:

·       A5036 Princess Way and Crosby Road South Junction, Seaforth

·       A5058 Millers Bridge and Derby Road Junction, Bootle

·       A565 Crosby Road North and South Road Junction, Waterloo

·       B5422 Hawthorne Road and Church Road Junction, Litherland

The report also provided information on real time automatic monitoring stations and the monitoring results in respect of Nitrogen Dioxide and Particulate Matter PM10; in accordance with a previous decision of the Committee (Minute No. 24 (4) of 22 October 2019) the report detailed the air quality impacts associated with traffic redistribution due to the opening of Broom’s Cross Road; and air quality actions and developments associated with the Air Quality Members Reference Group, Clean Air Zone feasibility study, Schools Air Quality project, DEFRA Air Quality grant fund and the Taxi Electric Vehicle project.

The report concluded that air quality in the majority of Sefton was within NAQS Objectives and that action plans were in place to work towards compliance in the four AQMA areas; that there  remained areas where there were major challenges to air quality including the expansion of the Port of Liverpool and the associated increase in HGVs; that officers would continue to develop and implement air quality improvement actions under the direction of the Air Quality Members Reference Group; and a more detailed report, specifically on the development of the business case for a Sefton Clean Air Zone, would be submitted to a future meeting of this Committee.     

Members of the Committee asked questions/commented on the following issues:

·       Complaints continue to be received about parents parking their vehicles with their engines running outside school premises and the opportunity to issue fixed penalty notices to remedy this problem

·       The introduction of Clean Air Zones and the specific areas in which they would be implemented

·       Vehicle types, which had the most significant impact on increasing NO2 exceedances, to be the subject of charging in Clean Air Zones and potential exemptions from the scheme for Sefton residents

·       Collaborative work being undertaken across the Liverpool City Region

·       Improved public transport and car sharing schemes would help to alleviate vehicle emissions

RESOLVED: That