Apr. 04 2024
Source Page: Effects of air and noise pollution: EIR releaseFound: Effects of air and noise pollution: EIR release
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential (a) viability and (b) merits of creating a national indoor air quality observatory to monitor (i) levels and (ii) the potential health effects of indoor air pollution.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
The Department continues to work collaboratively across the Government to address the impact of air pollution. We are taking significant and wide-ranging action to drive improvements to air quality, as set out in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Environmental Improvement Plan. The United Kingdom Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Cleaner Air Programme also aims to help reduce people’s exposure to air pollution, tackle disparities in exposure, and improve outcomes for all, including through increasing the evidence base and improving awareness and understanding of the health impacts of air pollution. The UKHSA has published a study quantifying the health burden in the population of England from key respiratory conditions associated with residential exposures to damp, mould, and formaldehyde.
Nov. 09 2023
Source Page: Air pollution in Northern Ireland 2022Found: Air pollution in Northern Ireland 2022
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to provide additional support to local authorities to reduce air pollution in areas which breach air quality standards.
Answered by Robbie Moore
As recognised in our Environmental Improvement Plan, local authorities have a central role in improving air quality. The Air Quality Strategy, published last year, supports councils in their role by providing a comprehensive framework for local action. Defra also supports local authorities in England to reduce air pollution through events, resources and knowledge sharing, including the 2023 Local Air Quality Symposium.
Alongside this, we run an annual Air Quality Grant Scheme. Through this grant, approximately £52 million has been awarded to nearly 500 local authority projects since 2010. This year the scheme will award over £6 million to improve air quality in local communities.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Office for Environmental Protection’s annual progress report published on 18 January 2024, what steps his Department is taking to (a) safeguard vulnerable groups from the impact of air pollution and (b) encourage long-term behaviour change to reduce polluting activity.
Answered by Robbie Moore
Through the Environment Act 2021 we introduced two new targets for fine particulate matter, the pollutant most damaging to human health, setting a maximum annual mean concentration target and a population exposure reduction target. This dual-target approach will improve public health for all by tackling the highest concentrations and ensuring all areas benefit from continuous improvement. Government recognises there is more to do to protect all people in our society and the environment from the effects of air pollution. This is why we are taking the significant and wide-ranging action to drive improvements to air quality as set out in our Environmental Improvement Plan 2023.
Government is undertaking a comprehensive review of how we communicate air quality information to ensure members of the public, and vulnerable groups in particular, have what they need protect themselves and understand how their behaviour impacts on air quality. This review is being undertaken by the Air Quality Information Systems steering group with the aim of publishing the recommendations this summer.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what research they have (1) commissioned, and (2) published, on the impact of exposure to air pollution on foetal development during pregnancy.
Answered by Lord Markham
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), formerly Public Health England, contributed to a report by the Royal College of Physicians’ and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health that examined the impact of exposure to air pollution across the course of a lifetime. It states that from the earliest stages of development DNA is susceptible to changes arising from exposure to air pollution. During critical periods of development, any interference can harm organs and tissues or change their developmental trajectory so that their function is impaired. The susceptibility of the development of lungs and the brain to air pollution are highlighted in the report.
UKHSA also provides the scientific secretariat to the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants, which is currently preparing a report considering the evidence linking maternal exposure to air pollution during pregnancy, with preterm birth, low birth weight and stillbirth.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will provide additional funding to organisations that increase awareness of how people can protect themselves from air pollution.
Answered by Robbie Moore
The grant has been running since 1997 and regularly funds projects aimed at increasing the awareness of the impacts of air pollution. Around £53 million has been awarded across almost 500 projects through the Air Quality Grant scheme since 2010. Projects have included anti-idling campaigns around schools, raising awareness about the impacts of domestic burning, and measures to encourage active travel.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of household air pollution on (a) health outcomes and (b) NHS capacity and resources.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
The UK Health Security Agency published a study quantifying the health burden in the population of England from key respiratory illness or conditions associated with residential exposures to damp, mould, and formaldehyde. In 2019, the presence of damp, mould, or both was associated with approximately 5,000 cases of asthma, and approximately 8,500 lower respiratory infections among children and adults. Residential formaldehyde exposure was associated with approximately 4,000 cases of childhood asthma among children.
Exposure to indoor air pollutants can trigger or exacerbate asthma, other respiratory or cardiovascular conditions, and may even have carcinogenic effects. Damp and mould have been associated with respiratory health outcomes, such as exacerbation of asthma, respiratory infections, and allergies. The National Health Service has not made an assessment of the potential impact of household air pollution on NHS capacity and resources.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government (a) is taking and (b) plans to take to ensure parity in air pollution reporting requirements between the UK and EU.
Answered by Robbie Moore
This Government is committed to leaving the environment in a better state than we found it and we have been clear that we will uphold our high standards on environmental protections and meet our international commitments. Having left the EU we want to ensure that our regulatory framework is appropriate, tailored to the UK and able to drive improved environmental outcomes.
The UK reports against requirements for both emissions and concentrations of air pollutants, as set out in domestic and international legislation. Concentrations are assessed under the Air Quality Standards Regulations 2010 and Environment Act 2021, both of which have annual reporting publications. Achievement of existing emission targets and projected achievement of future targets are reported as part of our domestic obligations under the National Emission Ceilings Regulations 2018 ensuring transparency and scrutiny of the UK’s progress. Emissions are also reported to the UNECE Secretariat to fulfil our international reporting obligations under the UNECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution. In addition to reporting to meet legislative requirements, the UK reports the data in two annual Accredited Official Statistics releases and makes more granular data available through the UK-Air and National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory websites.
The UK also continues to report on industrial emissions through the UK Pollutant Release and Transfer Protocol (PRTR), which is retained EU law and implements the UNECE Kyiv Protocol on PRTRs.
Oct. 23 2023
Source Page: Air pollution - health impacts: summary research findingsFound: Air pollution - health impacts: summary research findings