Have your say on plans to improve air quality in West Northants

Reducing air pollution is vitally important to the local health and environment. All councils have a duty to monitor local air quality to make sure it meets certain standards. West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) monitor air quality in several locations across the area.

WNC is in the process of developing Air Quality Action Plan or AQAP which outlines the steps it will take to work towards improving air quality and reducing air pollution.

Residents and businesses across the area are now invited to view the proposals and share their views. People can have their say from Monday 19 February to Sunday 17 March by visiting the WNC website here.

The draft AQAP replaces existing plans from former sovereign councils which have produced positive improvements in air quality and builds on them further. Some of the actions producing positive effects include:

• Controls around planning to make sure air quality is considered
• Introducing a Low Emission Strategy in Northampton
• Reducing vehicle emissions through improved ways and routes of travel
• Delivering electric vehicle infrastructure.

Cllr Jonathan Nunn, Leader of West Northamptonshire Council, said: “Given our bold Net Zero commitments, the Air Quality Action Plan is the first crucial step towards putting measures in place to improve air quality in Northampton, and wider West Northamptonshire.

“As part of the development of the plan, we will be looking at how we can improve air quality as a local authority and how we can support residents in making changes to help achieve these aims.”

The feedback from the consultation will inform the final draft which will be submitted to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), who oversees air quality plans. DEFRA will make a decision on the AQAPs suitability before notifying the council if it can be applied or not. Once in place, the AQAP will be annually reviewed when WNC publishes the Annual Status Report.