Agenda item

That Overview and Scrutiny Committee recommends to Cabinet that the revised Air Quality Action Plan be approved for public consultation.

The Chairman invited Mr Ballard to present his report to the Committee. Mr Ballard informed the Committee that the Air Quality Action Plan had been recommended by the Environment Panel to Cabinet for its approval to be published for public consultation. The consultation period would run from 17 May to 28 June 2021.

Mr Ballard explained to the Committee why the authority was required to produce an Air Quality Action Plan and that this would be the third plan adopted by the authority. Mr Ballard highlighted some of the initiatives which had been established through the previous plans including;

·         The Chichester Car Club

·         The Local Cycling Walking and Infrastructure Plan

·         Electric vehicle charging points

·         Introducing the Cycle to work Scheme

Mr Ballard explained that unlike previous plans this Plan included Midhurst, due to an Air Quality Action Management Area (AQMA) being declared at Rumbolds’ Hill in 2020.

Mr Ballard informed the Committee of the evidence base that was used in developing the plan, and how air quality was monitored. Future trends suggest that there will be significant levels of improvement in the air quality of Chichester and by 2025 it is expected that all four sites will be compliant with the NO₂ level set by Government.

Mr Ballard explained that the main actions of the plan were to;

·         undeclare both Orchard Street and Stockbridge Road as AQMA’s

·         decommission the air quality monitoring station at Orchard Street

·         decommission the air quality monitoring station in Lodsworth

Mr Ballard explained the different responsibilities that came under each authority (CDC and WSCC), for example WSCC is responsible for the highways and buses.

In response to a recent court case that had been reported in the press, Mr Ballard informed the Committee that Chichester District were not one of the 33 failing authorities that were failing to deliver Government targets and objectives and as such the court case was not relevant to Chichester.

Mr Ballard shared a number of graphs with the Committee, including a graph showing the impact of Covid 19 on NO₂, he explained that it was important that the Committee noted that the AQAP was based on pre Covid datasets.

Mr Ballard explained that that it was important to adopt an Air Quality Action Plan, as having such a document in place also for funding applications to be made for the actions (identified on page 58 of the plan) that will bring about the required changes in air quality. 

Mr Ballard responded to comments and questions as follows;

·         Mr Ballard explained that when the Highways Agency (HA) had originally consulted on their options in 2016, air quality modelling was included as part of that consultation. Chichester District Council had reviewed the modelling data and submitted a response accordingly.

·         Mr Ballard was unaware of whether a specific impact assessment would be undertaken on the Southern Link Road if it was adopted and would check outside the meeting with Mr Ayling, Divisional Manager Planning Policy. However, he did inform the Committee that as part of the Local Plan Revision some Air Quality modelling was been commissioned.

·         Mr Ballard acknowledged the comment made regarding the lack of any new secondary school provision on the southern side of the A27 and would relay this back to Planning Policy colleagues.

·         Mr Ballard would liaise with colleagues in Planning Policy regarding the Southern Gateway and feedback outside the meeting.

·         Mr Ballard informed the Committee that West Sussex County Council had just begun the process of developing their new Local Transport Plan.

·         Mr Ballard explained that statutory technical guidance states; that where there are annual mean levels of less than 60mg, then it is unlikely that there will be any exceedance of hourly levels.

·         With regards to the level of Air Quality on the Hornet, Mr Ballard informed the Committee that there were two monitoring sites on the Hornet. The data collected from these stations indicates that air quality on the Hornet is compliant with statutory standards for both NO₂ and PM₁₀, as a result there is no evidence to suggest that WSCC need to alter the road layout at that location.

·         Mr Ballard explained that Westhampnett Road does not form part of an Air Quality Management Area; however, they had been monitoring the site for a number of years, with an air quality monitoring station being installed approximately 12 months ago. Despite concerns data collected shows that the road is compliant with air quality standards.

·         In response a question regarding the rise in levels of pollution during 2016, Mr Ballard was unable to explain what had caused the increase. However, he explained that within air quality there are a number of variables which could affect the data, including the weather, wind, greater car movements etc.

·         In response to a comment regarding the disconnect between the public and air quality, Mr Ballard acknowledged the comments and agreed that as a result of national media and the link between certain health conditions and levels of air quality the public were much more concerned about their exposure to poor air quality. He explained that the report focused on NO₂, however going forward PM₁₀ will be of greater priority, and the introduction of the Environment Bill will see a binding standard for PM₁₀ set.

·         In response to a question from parishes regarding the reduction of speed along the A259 to help improve air quality, road safety etc, Mr Ballard explained that the majority of highway decisions are taken on an evidence based approach and a level of monitoring would need to be undertaken.

·         Mr Ballard explained that air quality monitoring had taken place at a number of locations over the years; there are currently 18 sites within the district being monitored on an annual basis. When the data collected shows that a site is significantly compliant with air quality standards then that site will no longer be monitored. Previous monitoring had been undertaken at the Witterings and data had shown that the site was compliant.

The Committee voted in favour of the proposed recommendation.

Resolved;

That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee recommends to Cabinet that the revised Air Quality Action Plan be approved for public consultation.