Green Party survey shows poor air quality on local road
A new survey by the Green Party has revealed that Horn Lane has the worst air quality of any road in London. It was one of nine sites that exceeded the European Union's (EU) legal limit for air pollution.
The road had 133 bad air days followed by Vauxhall Cross in Lambeth, with 129 bad air days. The EU allows every place to have only 35 bad air days a year.
The Green Party claims that poor air quality is responsible for the premature deaths of about 1,000 Londoners a year. They say there is a possibility of the UK Government being fined if they do not tackle the problem. The EU is currently investigating the level of particulate matter (PM10) - fine sooty particles found in exhaust fumes of vehicles - in the UK and particularly London.
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The EU's legal limit for air pollution came into effect in 2005. In 2000, only one place breached the bad air days limit but last year 11 sites failed to meet the EU standards.
Darren Johnson, a Green Party member of the London Assembly, said: "The failure of the government and local authorities borders on the criminal and we need the European Commission to take firm action against them. Whilst I welcome the London Mayor's introduction of a Low Emission Zone to deal with the older, more polluting heavy diesel vehicles, it won't be enough to guarantee the health of Londoners," he added.
The Low Emission Zone in London, which comes into effect in February 2008, will see a charge introduced for heavy polluting vehicles entering London.
September 28, 2007
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