Air Quality Legislation

These Regulations implement the EU Directives 80/779/EEC, 82/884/EEC and 85/203/EEC on air quality limit values and guide values for Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), suspended particulates, lead and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2).

This Act defines, within England, Scotland and Wales, the legal framework for duty of care for waste, contaminated land and statutory nuisance.

This Act consolidated the earlier Clean Air Acts of 1956 and 1968 as well as some other clean air legislation to provide a consistent framework to prescribe emissions to atmosphere of dark smoke, fumes, grit and dust. This Act retains the right for local authorities to establish Smoke Control Areas within their local authority boundary.

This Act established the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) and Part VI assigned duties to protect and improve air quality, including the establishment of the Air Quality Strategy and the Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) regime which requires local authorities to review and assess air quality in their area. Air Quality Management Areas and Air Quality Action Plans are also introduced under this Act.

These Regulations set the timescale for local authorities to review, assess and meet objectives for air quality.

These Regulations transpose Council Directives 1996/62/EC “The Framework Directive”  and 99/30/EC “The First Daughter Directive”  setting air quality limit values for SO2, NO2, Particulate Matter (PM10) and lead. Also included are reference methods, the assessment scheme and a requirement to establish a PM2.5 network.

These Regulations amend the Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations 2000 by making the objective for Carbon Monoxide (CO) more stringent, in line with 2000/69/EC “The Second Daughter Directive” . Supplementary long-term objectives for benzene and PM10 are also introduced.

These Regulations transposed The Second Daughter Directive (see above) into Scottish law by amending SSI No. 224 (2001) to include limit values for CO and benzene. The amendment also includes further clarifications and simplifications to this SSI.

These Regulations transpose Directive 2004/107/EC “The Fourth Daughter Directive”, relating to target levels in ambient air for nickel, arsenic, cadmium and mercury as well as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), in to Scottish law. These Regulations also introduce detailed requirements for monitoring of PM2.5 and a suite of tropospheric ozone precursors. Also stipulated is minimum geographical coverage for monitoring and requirements for providing information to the public.

These Regulations replace the Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2007 (S.S.I. 2007/182), which are revoked (regulation 29).
These Regulations implement the following Directives:— (a) Directive 2008/50/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe ; and (b) Directive 2004/107/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to arsenic, cadmium, mercury, nickel and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air. Directive 2008/50/EC replaces Council Directive 96/62/EC on ambient air quality assessment and management, Council Directive 1999/30/EC relating to limit values for sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter and lead in ambient air, Directive 2000/69/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to limit values for benzene
and carbon monoxide in ambient air, Directive 2002/3/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to ozone in ambient air, and Council Decision 97/101/EC of 27 January 1997 establishing a reciprocal exchange of information and data from networks and individual stations measuring ambient air pollution within the Member States.
The Regulations also incorporate requirements imposed by Directive 2003/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council providing for public participation in respect of the drawing up of certain plans and programmes relating to the environment and amending with regard to public participation and access to justice Council Directives 85/337/EEC and 96/61/EC.
Part 1 of the Regulations provides for definitions and designates the Scottish Ministers as a competent authority for the purposes of Directives 2008/50/EC and 2004/107/EC.
Part 2 of the Regulations provides for the assessment of ambient air quality. Chapter 1 relates to the assessment of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter, lead benzene and carbon monoxide. Chapter 2 relates to the assessment of ozone, and Chapter 3 relates to the assessment of arsenic, cadmium, nickel, mercury, benzo(a)pyrene and other polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
Part 3 of the Regulations sets out the duties of the Scottish Ministers in relation to the limit values, target values, long-term objectives, information and alert thresholds and critical levels for the protection of vegetation, all of which are set out in Schedules 2 to 6.
Part 4 of the Regulations provides for requirements in relation to PM2.5 in addition to the limit value and target value for this pollutant. The national exposure reduction target and average exposure indicators for PM2.5 are set by the Secretary of State in accordance with Part IV of the Air Quality Standard Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1001).
Part 5 of the Regulations imposes requirements on the Scottish Ministers to draw up air quality plans in relation to limit values and target values and short-term action plans in relation to alert thresholds. Short-term action plans may also be used in relation to limit values and target values.
Part 6 of the Regulations relates to public information.
Schedule 1 to the Regulations sets out the requirements for the siting of sampling points for the assessment of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter, lead, benzene and carbon monoxide.
Schedules 2 to 6 set out limit values, target values, long term objectives for ozone, information and alert thresholds, and critical levels for the protection of vegetation.
Schedule 7 sets out the information to be included in air quality plans.
Schedule 8 sets out the public information to be provided where information or alert thresholds are exceeded or are predicted to be exceeded.

The Regulations amend the Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations 2000 ("the 2000 Regulations"), which prescribe the relevant period for the purpose of Part 4 of the Environment Act 1995 and set the air quality objectives to be achieved.
Regulation 2(4) amends the table in the Schedule to the 2000 Regulations (the air quality objective table) by setting an air quality objective for the substance PM2.5. Regulation 2(5) introduces a definition of PM2.5 into the 2000 Regulations.
Regulation 2(2) and (3) amends regulation 3 of the 2000 Regulations so as to prescribe the relevant period for the purpose of Part 4 of the Environment Act 1995 in relation to the new air quality objective.