This Briefing Sheet has been prepared by the Maidenhead Great Park campaign group to help RBWM residents prepare and respond to housing development planning applications.
What is Air Pollution?
It is the toxic gases and particles in the air we breathe. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that “Air pollution is the presence of one or more contaminants in the atmosphere, such as dust, fumes, gas, mist, odour, smoke or vapour, in quantities and duration that can be injurious to human health.”
What causes Air Pollution?
Combustion of fossil fuels such as petrol, diesel, coal, oil and aviation fuel creates the pollution which concerns us most. Particulates created by motor vehicle engine wear, tyre wear and road surface abrasion are another form of toxic airborne pollution.
Why is Air Pollution a problem?
It damages human health and our environment. The WHO says that “Almost every organ in the body can be impacted by air pollution”. We know that PM2.5 particles are so tiny that they can enter the bloodstream from our lungs and then get transported to our organs.
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) says that “According to the Global Burden of Disease study, around half of global deaths related to outdoor air pollution are caused by a heart attack or stroke” and “people with existing health problems such as coronary heart disease may be more at risk from a heart attack or stroke due to air pollution, but exposure to … harmful pollutants affects everyone’s health, and is an urgent issue.”.
What are the main air pollutants?
Imperial College London says that “The main pollutants of concern are carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, ground level ozone, particulates, sulphur dioxide, hydrocarbons and lead”.
Is Air Pollution a problem in Windsor and Maidenhead?
Yes! RBWM has five Air Quality Management Areas (AQMA) because of the high levels of Nitrogen Dioxide. An AQMA was created in Windsor and Maidenhead in 2004. A second AQMA was declared in Windsor and new ones in Bray/Holyport and Wraysbury. Road traffic is the main cause but aviation is also a contributor.
How is Air Pollution measured?
RBWM uses diffusion tubes located around the Borough to measure Nitrogen Dioxide. There are three continuous monitors, one of which measures particulates in Maidenhead. Check out the Pollution Monitoring Google map.
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
A Maidenhead Golf Course Environmental Impact assessment (EIA) scoping report for the proposed development has been prepared for Cala Homes by LDA Design. It says: “The proposed development site is adjacent to Maidenhead Air Quality Management Area and the development proposal has the potential to significantly affect local air quality during both the construction and operational phases.”.
You can download the scoping report from RBWM’s planning application website and there’s a QR link to it below. Look for RBWM’s reference 22/02683/EIASCO.
The Government says the purpose of an EIA “is to protect the environment by ensuring that a local planning authority when deciding whether to grant planning permission for a project, which is likely to have significant effects on the environment, does so in the full knowledge of the likely significant effects, and takes this into account in the decision making process.”. The public “must be given an opportunity to give their views about the proposed development and the Environmental Statement”.
The Government also says “The aim of [EIA] is also to ensure that the public are given early and effective opportunities to participate in the decision making procedures”.
Because “the developer must ensure that it is prepared by competent experts” the developer will commission a specialist independent consultancy to write the EIA and this can be problematic if the Assessment simply justifies the developer’s preferred conclusion!
Planning Application
The Cala Homes full EIA report will be uploaded to RBWM’s planning application portal and can be downloaded for review and comment. RBWM’s Planning Application reference is 22/02683/EIASCO. Look out for the full EIA report and please let RBWM know what you think about it!
EIA Review Air Pollution Pointers
The general EIA method is to feed current air pollution data into a computer model to predict future pollution levels. Other variables affecting pollution are also fed into the model, such as predicted road traffic movements which are themselves calculated by computer models. A weakness is that, in terms of current data, RBWM has PM10 particulates pollution data from only one monitor (in Maidenhead) and has no measured PM2.5 particulates data at all. RBWM does not routinely measure actual road traffic volumes nor does it measure levels of any other pollutants.
Prevention & Cure
“Mitigation” usually appears many times in an EIA which ignores the prevention imperative; the need to stop air pollution being generated in the first place. Building fences along the edge of the wider ‘Smart’ M4 motorway for example, does not prevent air pollution rather it just slows its diffusion across the wider neighbourhood.
Specific Local Pollution Issues
Windsor and Maidenhead each have specific air pollution challenges. Both are located under Heathrow Airport flight paths. Maidenhead has one AQMA and Windsor has two. EIAs appear to not take account of the cumulative effects of road traffic pollution generated by other housing developments.