A report updating the Committee on the changes made to the Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP) following the conclusion of the public consultation and seeking Committee approval to adopt and endorse a final version of the AQAP to be submitted to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) to allow formal adoption.

Further to Minute 16 of the meeting held on 15 November 2023, the Committee considered a report that provided an update on the outcome of the public consultation that had been held in order to obtain feedback in relation to the proposed Air Quality Action Plan 2024-2029. The report asked the Committee to consider the comments that had been received during the consultation process and sought its approval to adopt a final version of the Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP). The following documents were appended to the report:

The report explained that whilst air quality (NO2) in Reading had improved there were still some locations in the town where air quality levels were above UK and World Health Organization (WHO) limits. The draft AQAP (attached to the report at Appendix 4) aimed to target those locations to achieve compliance with UK and WHO limits and sought to further improve air quality across the Borough as a whole. The new AQAP would continue to focus on reducing nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels in order to achieve compliance and would also target the reduction of Particulate Matter 2.5 (PM2.5) which new evidence had suggested was extremely harmful to health. Measures to address PM2.5 emissions had therefore been given considerable weight throughout the new draft AQAP.

The Action Plan had identified the areas where the Council needed to work together with businesses, the public and across Council departments such as Transport, Planning, Public Health and Sustainability in order to improve air quality. The Action Plan set out a range of measures (Table 5 of Appendix 4 refers) that officers had identified for implementation, and which would be worked towards by the Council over the next five years.

The report explained that a consultation exercise had been carried out on the content of the draft AQAP between 6 December 2023 and 17 January 2024. The Council had received a total of 217 consultation responses which had included feedback from residents, an appraisal of the draft AQAP from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) and feedback from other interested groups such as Friends of the Earth. A summary of the feedback and recommendations that had been received following the consultation exercise was set out in the report with a further detailed analysis of the consultation results provided in Appendices 1 to 3. Overall, the public consultation had found there to be strong approval for most actions but low confidence in them being effective in addressing air pollution.

As a result of the consultation exercise, some minor changes had been made to the content of the AQAP. A recommendation had been received from Defra to include, in instances where the data was available, better quantification of the impact that individual measures would have on air quality. The report explained that, in line with Defra’s recommendation, efforts had been made to quantify the impact that each action would have on NO2 levels but that this was not possible for some of the transport measures due to the early stage that they were at in their development. Officers had agreed with Defra to use available data where possible and to update the Action Plan as further data became available. Defra had also asked for a definitive estimated year of compliance to be provided in the Action Plan.

The report explained that almost all of the measures that members of the public had put forward for inclusion had already been included within AQAP. There were however some recommended changes to the measures listed in Table 5 of the AQAP. They were as follows:

·       The addition of a ‘Tree Planting and Greening’ measure to the list of action to align the AQAP with the Council’s Tree Strategy in order to maximise tree planting and greening along ‘tree corridors’ (Appendix 4, Table 5.2 refers, Measure Number RDQA26);

·       The addition of a ‘Council Fleet Electrification’ measure to the list of actions to show that the Council intended to lead by example by continuing to upgrade its fleet to low emission vehicles (see Appendix 4, Table 5.1, Measure Number RDQA18);

·       The removal of the ‘Cross Thames Travel Scheme’ measure (previously listed in Table 5.1 of the AQAP as RDAQ10) from the table of actions. It was noted that whilst the measure was popular it was unlikely to be achievable in the lifespan of the AQAP.

At the meeting Councillor Ennis tabled an amendment to the recommended action to retain the ‘Cross Thames Travel Scheme’ measure (Measure No: RDAQ10) in the list of actions (Table 5.1 of the AQAP), noting that, whilst it was unlikely to be achievable within the lifetime of the Action Plan, the Cross Thames Travel Scheme remained a long-term goal of the Council and so should be retained in the final version of the AQAP.

It was also noted that the consultation results set out in Point 9 of Appendix 1 (Summary Report of Consultation Responses) had been listed using the Council’s old Ward boundaries. The Committee asked that when the final version of the AQAP was published that the results be presented using the Council’s current Ward boundaries.

Resolved –

(1)           That the ‘Cross Thames Travel Scheme’ measure be retained as Measure Number RDAQ10 within Table 5.1 in the final version of the approved Air Quality Action Plan 2024-2029;

(2)           That, subject to (1) above, following the conclusion of the public consultation the Air Quality Action Plan 2024-2029, attached to the report at Appendix 4, be approved for adoption;

(3)           That the final approved version of the Air Quality Action Plan 2024-2029 be sent to Defra to obtain statutory approval to allow formal adoption;

(4)           That the final published version of Appendix 1 (Summary Report of Consultation Responses) be amended so that the data provided at point 9 reflected the Council’s current Ward boundaries.