Consultation on the proposal to declare an Air Quality Management Area in Great Barton

Audience: Stakeholders with an interest in the Air Quality of Great Barton (Statutory Consultees, Great Barton Parish Council, District and County councillors for Great Barton, Residential and business properties within and surrounding the AQMA

This consultation is now closed.

It was open from 23 January 2017 to 3 March 2017.

St Edmundsbury Borough Council is consulting on the declaration of an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) for a short stretch of the A143 in the Great Barton parish.

The council has a duty to declare AQMAs where annual objectives for a number of prescribed pollutants are being exceeded, or are likely to be exceeded, at relevant locations. Nitrogen Dioxide has exceeded the annual mean objective at the council's monitoring location at the proposed AQMA since 2007 and an AQMA was previously declared in 2009. In 2012 the Air Quality Management Area was revoked based on previous interpretations of the legislation. Updated DEFRA guidance was published in 2016 and it has been concluded that the Air Quality Management Area should be reinstated. Further details are provided in our 2016 Annual Status Report

Although concentrations of Nitrogen Dioxide have reduced during recent years, we are concerned that additional traffic associated with proposed development in the area will have a negative impact on air quality.

If reinstating the AQMA is successful then we will work with stakeholders to produce a detailed action plan and will form a group to develop the proposed actions and monitor progress.

As part of this consultation, the council would like your comments on the proposal to declare an AQMA. Please include any factors that you believe may be important in contributing to the air quality and any actions that you consider may be important in resolving the problem. We also need to establish a group, which will include local representatives, to take this work forward. If you wish to be considered as a local representative, then please let us know as part of your consultation response.

View the map of the proposed Great Barton AQMA area

If you would like to make any representations with regard to this consultation, please complete the response form and return it by email or post:

• Great Barton Air Quality Management Area consultation response form (Word)
• Great Barton Air Quality Management Area consultation response form (PDF)

Email: environment@westsuffolk.gov.uk

Post:

Environment Team
St Edmundsbury Borough Council
West Suffolk House
Western Way
Bury St Edmunds
Suffolk
IP33 3YU

Closing date for the consultation is 5pm 3 March 2017.