MNHQ here: how concerned are you about air quality?

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello

We've been contacted by the Mayor of London's office; they're asking us to find out what Mumsnet users think about air quality - particular in relation to children's health, although it doesn't have to be exclusively so.

So we'd be grateful if you could let us have your views. Here are some prompts, although as ever feel free to ignore if you have other thoughts

*Is air quality something that you think about often, or that impacts on your daily life (or that of your family members)?
*Have you ever considered air quality when making decisions about where to live or work, or where to send your children to school?
*Do you take any measures to try to protect yourself or family members from poor air quality (such as filter masks)?
*Are you particularly concerned about any individual pollutants?
*Who do you think should be responsible for improving the quality of the air (if anyone)?
*If you could opt in to auto-alerts that gave you information about the air quality each day, would you do so? How would you use this information?
*Would you support policy measures to reduce air pollution such as scrapping diesel automobiles or charges on car use?

All feedback (not just from Londoners!) very welcome - thank you.
MNHQ

Yes, major concern in London. Lots of schools and nurseries bearcmain roads. Also possible air pollution from flights too. Really worrying how bad it is. I walk alternate routes when am with the kids to avoid traffic. Please do something about it!

I found it worse in London (now in a smaller town). I would very much welcome greater efforts to tackle air pollution and to reduce vehicle traffic.

My son was allocated a highly regarded, ofsted outstanding primary school for September 2016. The playground is basically on the north circular (A406) and I am doing everything to try and find an alternative as I just cannot bear to think of him playing there every day so it has indeed affected my decisions. This needs to be addressed!

It's something I used to worry about when I lived in London, I'm asthmatic and was really conscious on hot muggy days. I now live in rural Yorkshire so it's really a concern anymore!

I agree with all of you, breathing in London was a problem for me before I moved away to Essex. My kids would complain sometimes about them finding it hard to breath.

Zone 2 London dweller here. Air pollution definately concerns me. I notice my asthma is worse in the summer, and try to go on the backstreets when out with DD.
if we're regularly exceeding air pollution targets here, then I think it's the mayor/ local councils job to deal with this,
I'd back any campaigns.

Not in London but I am in a UK city with illegally high levels of air pollution and am very concerned about it. High levels of private vehicle use in to city centre despite good transport links but council is tackling that through charges (much to the amusing chagrin of the car lobby).

Driving has a high impact on society and its cost should reflect that. Make public transport cheap and easy while private transport should have charges to reflect its cost on society. Remove 'free' aka tax payer subsidised parking. Fines for idling in traffic queues.
Public transport should use electric vehicles as much as possible.
Make walking and cycling safer and more attractive

I do use an air alert (Breezometer app) but would like it if alongside ways to reduce exposure to pollution it also advised on reducing your contribution to pollution (for eg it says try to stay inside but it does not say do not drive when pollution is high)

Would also like to see car free days and bans on old vehicles like Paris is doing

Air pollution does concern me. I am not in London, I am in the suburbs of a major city in Wales.

I am particularly annoyed that cars get all the attention yet lorries and buses spew out great heaps of emissions. My impression is that private individuals are easier pickings to penalise with financial disincentives and fines than businesses. I fully occupied, modern car (small petrol/turbo engine or hybrid) is going to be better than a 2/3 empty bus in terms of greeness.

I drive an electric car which means that I am not contributing to local, buggy height exhaust fumes - but I am not sure my (tiny!) contribution helps much.

I get the rage when I think how previous governments have pushed diesel as the ‘best’ choice of fuel (through incentivisation which favoured diesel), I suspect mainly to encourage people to swap their cars hence boost consumer spending and the economy, but now leaving a huge legacy of older smoke spewing cars on the road, and public misconception that diesel is better / cheaper than petrol (it’s not unless you do quite high mileage and reasonably long journeys).

I see a lot of diesel taxis which clearly need a service too. Perhaps taxis could be incentivised to be cleaner at source i.e. electric or hybrid, certainly local taxis here seem to be exclusively diesel in need of a new particulate filter based on the plumes of black smoke.

I also don't understand why more freight isn't moved by rail - I imagine that one train could pull huge loads of cargo (e.g. overnight when the tracks are not clogged with commuter trains) which would then only need to be moved locally by truck (could be incentivised to be done at night when kids are not in school/at the park etc?), reducing the thousands of lorry miles and emissions. I suppose that would only work if distribution centres existed and appropriately located (which I expect they are not).

Finally, why are busses allowed to be so dirty? Again, these are nose to tail throughout towns and urban areas and they are filthy with black smoke and smelly exhaust fumes. Are electric buses viable yet?

Yes, I live just outside Bradford and it's appalling round here. All the local schools are on very high use roads and my son has had respiratory problems in the past - not asthma. My friend and I did some monitoring of levels near local roads a couple of years ago and found the NO2 levels to be twice the legal limits in some places. The council say they are at the forefront of changing this, but I'm not seeing any change. Health problems are so bad in this area that something really needs to be done. Would hopefully save money for the NHS etc too.

Yes we live directly on an A road all our windows open out that side so difficult to avoid it. I do worry particularly for my son but also my own health. I had a carbon monoxide breathylser test one time and it was like someone who smoked 3 cigarettes a day- not good as I don't smoke. I did exclude one school because it is also on the same road. I would like us to move but can't as I am not working. I would like this to be a priority for london to improve air quality and reduce other negative effects of car ownership.

Very concerned about it, especially the South London super Incinerator which is being built for four London boroughs to use to burn their waste, near residential properties and in an area already will air quality exceeding EU regulations (they are just building a bigger chimney so it blows further away). So concerned thinking about moving countries! UK seems very behind the times when it comes to the environment.

Air pollution was one of the reasons for moving out of London with a toddler in 2003. On warm days we could see an orange smog hanging over the city from Parliament Hill. I love London but unless transport issues are drastically addressed then pollution will continue.

Definitely concerned - I live next to a main road in London, but used to work with Defra and they were concentrating on air quality and almost nothing else, what with Oxford St exceeding legal limits. We need to remove diesel vehicles from cities. London at least has a lead in electeic buses and cabs, but lots of lobbyists saying haulers can't afford new trucks.

I'm not worried about waste incineration - modern incinerators are very different to the 1970s and the emissions are remarkably clean.

Massively concerned. I visited friends in rural Wales recently and it was the first time in ages I felt like I could breathe properly. Many UK cities are clogged and unhealthy and far too many children are living next to shitty fume-filled roads.

Councils need ring-fenced funds for air quality action zones. Ring fenced. Setting air quality up as a priority which has to compete with social care and special educational needs for funding at local authority budget-setting time just isn't going to work.

Is air quality something that you think about often, or that impacts on your daily life (or that of your family members)? I think about it but we are not particularly vulnerable so don't do much about it.
Have you ever considered air quality when making decisions about where to live or work, or where to send your children to school? No.
Do you take any measures to try to protect yourself or family members from poor air quality (such as filter masks)? No
Are you particularly concerned about any individual pollutants? No
Who do you think should be responsible for improving the quality of the air (if anyone)? The government through legislation and cracking down on garages that pass the emotions tests by holding the probe nowhere near a car as part of the mot.
If you could opt in to auto-alerts that gave you information about the air quality each day, would you do so? How would you use this information? I would be interested but wouldn't change anything.
*Would you support policy measures to reduce air pollution such as scrapping diesel automobiles or charges on car use? Yes. I support the polluter pays principle. But I also think the underground has terrible air and needs sorting.

I'm very concerned about it. Moving out of the city we live in partly because of air quality. The air pollution here is really bad and we have high levels of respiratory diseases. Childhood asthma is really high here. Would love a campaign about this

Hugely concerned. My son has severe asthma.

It was a factor when I was deciding what school for him. It was also a big factor in deciding where to live - I ruled out any properties in air quality management areas.

It has to be made as safe and easy as possible for people to use non-polluting methods of transport and as expensive as possible for people to use the car.

I don't live in London but have some very wealthy friends who do and paying the congestion charge for them is an absolutely minor inconvenience.

No I'm not concerned, my farts don't smell too bad actually.

Sorry I'll get my coat

I grew up near London, studied there and have lots of friends based there but I wouldn't move back because of the air quality. Mainly concerned about NOx and particulates.

Should have said in last post I have a small child- if it was just me I'd probably risk my lungs....

We live outside of London in the SE.
I disregarded a nursery for DC2, that otherwise would have been our no.1 choice, as the playground was next to one of the town's main arterial roads. I'm aware air pollution had even more effect on young children.

I'm also pleased our town centre is pedestrianised.

Very. I've heard it's linked to Autism...with a higher amount of diagnoses happening among Mothers who live in areas of high traffic.

Manchester suburbs: It is certainly a consideration for me. We live opposite a school and I'm astounded that we have numerous parents that arrive an hour before school starts and finishes and sit on the road with their engines running. By school start/ pick up time there are often 15-20 cars with engines that have been running for a prolonged period. I've wondered a few times how you would go about measuring the pollution. I have 3 young children which is why it concerns me.

Where do they get all that free petrol to waste? Astoundingly selfish behaviour!

I live in Cornwall so the air is fresh off the Atlantic. But it smells much better than London air. I noticed every week when I first came here that the air smelled of wood smoke. Is it healthier? Don't know.