Issue - meetings

To consider the report of the Strategic Director of Operations.

Agreed:

RECOMMENDED that Council note the statutory annual status report.

RESOLVED that Executive:

(1)   note the statutory annual status report;

(2)   does not amend the current Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) and agrees that the Head of Service scope out a programme to include the physical and financial resources to revise and consult upon the Air Quality Action Plan for the current Air Quality Management Area as well as an Air Quality Strategy for the city; and

(3)   ask that the Scrutiny Committee on 20 November 2025 formulate ideas that they would like to be considered as part of the scoping programme, so that these can be factored into the future report when the physical and financial resource is being looked at.

Reason for Decision: As set out in the report and as amended at the meeting.

The Executive received the report statutory Annual Status report that had been submitted to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and contained the monitoring data from 2024, in-year summary of the actions taken to improve local air quality and future plans.

The Leader moved and Councillor Williams seconded an amendment to the report recommendations to read as follows:-

Two original recommendations remain unchanged as follows:

·        that Executive notes the statutory annual status report;

·        that Council notes the statutory annual status report;

To delete recommendations 2.2 and 2.4; and replace with:

·        that Executive does not amend the current Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) and instead asks that the Head of Service scopes out a programme to include the physical and financial resource to revise and consult upon the Air Quality Action Plan for the current Air Quality Management Area as well as an Air Quality Strategy for the city; and

·        that scrutiny on 20 November 2025 is asked to formulate ideas that they would like to be considered as part of the scoping programme, so that these can be factored into the future report when the physical and financial resource is being looked at.

The Portfolio Holder for City Management in speaking to the reason for the amendments made the following points:

·        no area in Exeter currently exceeded the 40 micrograms per metre cube NO² exceedance which demonstrated that the Council was a on course for improved air quality across the city;

·        although one area in East Wonford Hill, previously exceeded 40 micrograms, it was now below that value, however, having an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) on a short stretch of road did not seem beneficial; and

·        there needed to be a focus on continuing to improve air quality across the whole city with a focus on developing a five-year air quality strategy.

In speaking to the amendment, the Portfolio Holder for City Management read some key points of information for Members to consider:

·        Air quality within the city had improved significantly over the last decade and was welcomed.

·        The monitoring data gathered from the diffusion tubes for NO², showed that no sites measured an exceedance of the annual average objective in 2024 for NO² and that exceedance was 40 micrograms per metre cubed. This was the first year when all measurements had been below the objective for NO² and marked a significant milestone in the continued improvement of the city's air quality.

·        There had been no exceedances from the previous year to create an unexpected dilemma for decision makers. For a number of years now, DEFRA's annual appraisal had stated that when a number of locations had more than three consecutive years without exceedance, the authority, in light of the Act and statutory guidance, needed to review the air quality management area with a view to covering the remaining areas that contained exceedances.

·        This report had correctly fulfilled that role by asking for a revision to be considered.

·        There was a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 84