Eastbourne council pledges action on air pollution

Eastbourne borough council has pledged to tackle the air pollution in the borough, following meetings with a local environmental campaign group.

Council leader David Tutt met with Andrew Durling, co-ordinator of Eastbourne and District Friends of the Earth to discuss the issue, on which the council has pledged to act.

Eastbourne borough council wants to tackle air pollution in the town

The authority and environmental group met in response to a World Health Organisation report highlighting emissions levels across the globe.

Air quality

Councillor Tutt said: “Our air quality levels are at almost half the 40 micrograms per cubic metre (PM10) guideline set by the government and EU.

“However, we are open and willing to find out more about improving these levels wherever possible for the benefit of people living, visiting and working in Eastbourne.”

Meetings

The local authority and Eastbourne Friends of the Earth group both confirmed they will hold further meetings.

Mr Durling praised the council for being proactive about air pollution.

He said: “Air pollution in the UK is a public health emergency, causing over 40,000 premature deaths a year as well as increased ill heath, especially amongst the very young and elderly.

“Most towns and cities in Britain have air pollution that is above World Health Organisation guidelines, which are much stricter than the EU legal limits because recent research shows how extremely  toxic certain forms of air pollution are, such as diesel fumes from road traffic.

“We are delighted that the local authority is being pro-active on this issue and we look forward to positive engagement with the council to make Eastbourne’s air cleaner and safer for us all.”