An overview of air quality in Reigate and Banstead
Information about the levels of air pollution in the Borough of Reigate and Banstead.
Reigate and Banstead Borough Council serves an area of approximately 50
square miles of predominantly open countryside.
Though we do not live in
an especially built up or industrial area however, the Borough Council still has
to address the issue of air quality.
National projections indicate an
ever increasing amount of road traffic. With Gatwick, a major international
airport close to homes in south Horley, the issue of air quality will become
increasingly important.
While 'normal' levels of air pollution do not
have an obvious day to day impact on the lives of the population as a whole, air
pollution can impinge on the lives of people who already suffer from breathing
problems.
Consequently a series of objective and limit values have been
set by the government and the European Union for a range of pollutants and
Councils across the country have been reviewing their air quality against these
limits.
The Borough Council has been engaged in a phased review process
to identify the most significant pollutants in the air locally, and the areas
where they are most prevalent.