Air Quality
Air is essential to life. It is the
mixture of gases that we breathe. Good air quality is therefore
vital to good health. The main components of air are nitrogen,
oxygen, carbon dioxide and variable amounts of dust and water
vapour.
Common air pollutants
include:
- Ozone
- Nitrogen Dioxide
- Sulphur Dioxide
- Lead
- Fine particulate matter or PM 10 - particle in the air below
10mm aerodynamic diameter which can particularly affect people with
breathing problems.
The Environmental Health Department is responsible for air
pollution within the Borough, including the monitoring of air
quality and prevention of pollution from industry and homes,
including coal fires and bonfires. For further information please
see links below.
In the 1950s the major source of air pollution in our cities
came from the burning of fossil fuels like coal which gave rise to
the great smogs. This type of pollution significantly decreased
after the introduction of clean air laws. The biggest problem we
now face comes from road traffic emissions. Because most of
the pollution is invisible, many people assume we don't have a
problem.
AirAlert
AirAlert is a service provided by the
Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Air Quality Network, that sends
FREE messages direct to vulnerable people whenever
air pollution levels are forecast to be above the 'low' (normal)
air pollution level.
You can register for this FREE service by
visiting the AirAlert website or by
contacting the Environmental Health team.
We hope the pages in this section help you to understand the
issues surrounding air pollution and what we are doing about it in
Bedford.