07 January 2020
Enfield's first 'school street' schemes - outside St Monica's primary school and Oakthorpe primary school - are likely to go live after the February half term. The council hopes to complete a further three schemes by this spring. The rate of implementation in the next financial year and thereafter will depend on availability of funding and the degree of interest and commitment shown by schools.
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02 December 2019
The Mums for Lungs campaign has published an updated version of its London's Toxic Air flyer, intended primarily for distribution at school Christmas fairs, but useful for informing everyone about the problem of air pollution in the capital and ways in which individuals can help reduce pollution and their exposure to dirty air.
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01 May 2019
A new report by Centre for London, Green Light: Next Generation Road User Charging for a Healthier, More Liveable, London, calls for London to move towards an innovative new road user charging scheme which charges drivers on a per-mile basis. Costs would vary by vehicle emissions, local levels of congestion and pollution and availability of public transport alternatives; and prices would be set before the journey begins.
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27 April 2019
Living, Breathing, London is a film about the effects of air pollution created by Ross Field of Videoblogg Productions
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03 January 2019
The air pollution that we breathe every day is largely invisible, but is killing us. How did it get this bad, and how can we stop it? Dr Gary Fuller, an air pollution scientist in the Environmental Research Group at King’s College London, explores the history and affects of air pollution, how we can all make a difference and why he's written his new book: The Invisible Killer: The Rising Global Threat of Air Pollution and How We Can Fight Back. Listen to a podcast with Dr Fuller.
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11 September 2018
There are many reasons to regret the fact that so many children these days are driven to school instead of walking or making their own way by public transport. Among the problems are lack of sufficient exercise, congestion and road danger caused by build-ups of cars near school gates, and exposure to toxic fumes, which recent research has found is actually more of a problem inside a car than outside.
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11 October 2017
New research reveals that every Londoner in the capital lives in an area exceeding World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for the most dangerous toxic particulates known as PM2.5.
The research, based on the latest updated London Atmospheric Emissions Inventory, also shows that 7.9 million Londoners – nearly 95 per cent of the capital’s population – live in areas of London that exceed the guidelines by 50 per cent or more.
PM2.5 are small toxic air particles which are.......
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19 April 2017
This article has been republished with permission. It originally appeared on the Greener Journeys website on 22nd April. In view of yesterday's announcement, the first sentence presumably no longer holds true.
DEFRA is due this month to publish its new Air Quality Plan. Government has already lost two court cases on this issue, so the pressure is on.
Concern over air quality is no longer just the preserve of environmental groups and it is widely recognized that we are facing a.......
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25 January 2017
Air pollution levels in London and elsewhere in the UK have been alarmingly high since before the weekend. Yesterday central London registered the highest possible alert level: 10: Black. And the extremely high and dangerous levels reached outer London. 8: Red at sites in Enfield - a value associated with central London on particularly bad days.
Pollution peaks in London 23 Jan 2017 recorded by www.londonair.org.uk (Source: Evening Standard)
Calls for action are growing.......
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28 October 2016
The Mayor of London has launched the second phase of his consultation on proposed measures to improve air quality in the Capital.
The consultation phase, which runs until 18 December, invites the public to comment on detailed proposals for an Emission Surcharge payable by drivers whose vehicles do not meet stipulated conditions when driving in the Congestion Zone. It also asks for feedback on the possible earlier introduction of an Ultra Low Emissions Zone and its possible enlargement to.......
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20 October 2016
Vehicle Idling Action are recruiting volunteers to become Clean Air Champions in twelve London boroughs - including Enfield.
Join our Vehicle Idling Action campaign and be part of a movement to bring much needed positive environmental changes to our communities. Together we can spread awareness about the negative impacts of engine idling, creating long-term behavioural changes in drivers to immediately reduce localised air pollution.
We are establishing a team of enthusiastic, willing,.......
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26 July 2016
The Mayor of London's public consultation on measures to resolve the capital's air quality crisis finishes on Friday 29th July. Recently published reports question the adequacy of Sadiq Khan's proposals and suggest much tougher controls, especially in relation to diesel cars.
See this earlier article for information about the consultation.
Call to completely remove diesel cars
A report by the Institute for Public Policy Research, drawing on analysis by Kings College London, calls.......
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09 July 2016
The Mayor of London has set out his intention to address poor air quality in the capital. He has announced plans to introduce new measures, such as an extra charge on the most polluting vehicles, and expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone beyond inner London, in order to improve the local environment and health of residents and visitors.
Residents of all London boroughs are invited to participate in an online consultation about their views on the severity of the problem and proposed.......
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02 May 2016
The following advice has been issued by the British Lung Foundation.
What can I do about air pollution?
On most days and away from busy city streets, air pollution in the UK does not rise to levels at which we need to make major changes to our habits to avoid exposure.
Nobody needs to worry about going outdoors. Children should not be kept from going to school or stopped from taking part in games.
If you have a lung condition, you might want to avoid spending long periods of time in places.......
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29 April 2016
The following is reproduced from www.parliament.uk
Urgent Government action is needed to stop up to 50,000 people a year dying early from air pollution-related illnesses, says the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, in its report on Air quality.
Report: Air quality
Report: Air quality (PDF 675KB)
Inquiry: Air quality
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
The Committee's Air quality report presses for new Clean Air Zones in dozens of English towns and cities.......
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13 November 2015
In this film of a presentation at a conference held in Australlia, Simon Birkett, Founder and Director of Clean Air in London, talks about the most important lessons learned by him from 10 years of campaigning on air pollution. The film urges immediate action to reduce local air pollution and greenhouse gases to protect public health and mitigate climate change.
"One Atmosphere" can be viewed as ten separate "chapters" or as a single 35 minute film at https://vimeo.com/145615256........
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24 July 2015
This video is a couple of years old, but is worth revisiting in the context of letters that have recently appeared in the Enfield newspapers about the pros and cons of cycling rather than driving........
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14 July 2020
Overnight on Sunday/Monday this week a thousand posters popped up around London and other parts of the country, encouraging people to ditch the car and walk, scoot or cycle instead when schools resume in September. The posters had been sent out in secret to supporters by the clean air campaign group Mums for Lungs, which was established in 2017 when a group of parents walking around South London with small babies became aware of the toxic levels of air pollution on London's streets.
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