Air Quality Management

1
Air Quality Management Practice in Europe
Dr Gary Haq Stockholm Environment Institute
University of York, UK
2
Urban Air Quality in Europe
Europe still experiences air pollution and
impacts Exceedances for ground-level
O3 PM SO2 NO2 APHEIS Study- Health
Impact Assessment of 26 European Cities for PM
and Black Smoke 2,653 Premature deaths could be
prevented each year if long-term exposure to
average annual PM10 are reduced to 40 mg/m3
3
Urban Air Quality in Europe

• Forecasts of air quality in Europe suggest
  40-50
• reduction in all pollutants over the period
  1995-2020
• 30 reduction in PM10
• 60 reduction in Benzene
• Further action to reduce exceedences of PM10
  and
• NO2 threshold limits
• Motor vehicle emissions are the main source

4
EU Action on Air Quality

• Developing limit and target values for ambient
  air
• quality - Air Quality Framework Directive
• Developing integrated strategies to combat
  effects of
• air pollution (e.g. Clean Air for Europe
  (CAFÉ))
• Identifying cost-effective reductions in
  targeted areas
• (e.g. Auto-Oil Programmes)

5
Air Quality Framework Directive (96/62/EC)

• Outlines mandatory requirements on Members States
  to
• Measure air quality by reference to limit
  values laid
• down in the Daughter Directives
• Draw up plans to address breaches of air
  quality
• standards in the short and long term
• Inform the public about any alert threshold
  breaches

6
AQM MEASURES - Air Quality Monitoring
Gothenburg and Stockholm, Sweden

• A specialized GIS system for AQM that provides
• cost-effective air quality data to support
  urban
• planning activities, environment and health
  studies.
• Integrated system that simulates AQ and covers
• measurements, emissions and modelling.

7
Airviro
8
Real time data for air quality in Gothenburg that
uses the Airviro
9
AQM MEASURES - Transport and Land Use Planning

• Compact town planning reducing the need to
  travel
• Priority to traffic reduction as part of
  spatial planning
• Car free zones
• Systematic creation of infrastructure for
  bicycle use and
• pedestrians
• Reduction of inner city congestion
• Revitalisation of the city centre.

10
Transport and Land Use Planning
Groningen, The Netherlands

• Since 1977 Groningen pursued an integrated
• town and traffic planning.
• Approx. 43 share of bicycle use for journey
• from home to work World Cycle City

Utrecht, The Netherlands

• ABC location policy classifies urban
• development according to conditions for
  transport.
• The right business in the right place

11
AQM MEASURES - Traffic and Air Quality Issues

• Steady traffic flow routes
• Suitable street design for all transport modes
• Traffic calming to reduce emissions in
  sensitive areas
• Improvement and Promotion of public transport
• and bicycle use
• Use of alternative fuels for fleet and public
  transport
• (e.g. LPG, Ethanol)
• Random road side testing for vehicle emissions

12
Traffic and Air Quality Issues
Bern, Switzerland

• Adopted a Traffic Management Plan that reduced
• emissions on main streets by 15-25 per cent

Bologna, Italy

• 1999 Air Quality Plan to address motor vehicle
• pollution within the city

13
AQM MEASURES - Participation and
collaboration in Local AQM
York, United Kingdom
Air Quality Management Areas

• AQMA are designated for parts of a city where
• air quality objectives are not being met
• Boundaries of AQMA are defined via a
  consultation
• process with relevant stakeholders
• An AQM Action Plan is developed to ensure air
• quality objectives are met

14
Three AQMA were proposed based on air quality
data and the results of public participation
15
Conclusions European cities have made significant
progress in improving urban air quality Common
emission standards, integrated strategies,
monitoring and enforcement, planning laws and
regulations Provision of public information on
air quality Investment in AQM over 5 decades as
GNP increased LAQM is increasingly being
considered as the most effective way to address
poor urban air quality LAQM is the application of
a systematic approach to the control of air
quality issues in which all factors determining
air quality are considered in an integrated way.