Lockdown helping to keep pollution levels down
Toxic traffic fumes in Scotland did not break legal limits for the first time in a decade due to curbs on travel during the coronavirus lockdown, new analysis has found.
Average concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter in Scotland’s dirtiest streets have been exceeding maximum safe levels since they were set out by the EU in 2010.
But the latest figures show a drop in the numbers of vehicles on roads during the first lockdown, which began last March, reduced emissions for the whole year sufficiently to stay below the statutory limit.
Environmental campaigners say the findings show a clear link between car journeys and pollution, and action must be taken to keep levels permanently down.
Air pollution has been named as the biggest human killer globally, overtaking heart disease, poor diet and smoking as the leading preventable cause of premature death.
Studies have shown exposure is linked to respiratory illnesses such as asthma and chronic lung disease, as well as cancer, heart attacks, strokes and even dementia.
It can also lead to low birth weight and delayed development in babies whose mothers were exposed while pregnant.
Children, the elderly and people with pre-existing health problems are also disproportionately affected.
Estimates suggest 2,500 Scots die early each year as a result, part of 40,000 across the UK and 6.5 million globally.
Closure of schools and offices and government instructions to stay at home, brought in last spring, saw the number of vehicles on roads plummet.
The measures resulted in steep drops in quantities of poisonous fumes, most noticeably on the busiest commuter roads in Scotland’s largest cities.
Routes such as Hope Street in Glasgow and Edinburgh’s Nicolson Street saw some of the most dramatic reductions.
But contaminants swiftly rose to former levels when restrictions were loosened.
Gavin Thomson, air pollution campaigner for Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “It’s a huge pity that it took a deadly pandemic to bring our air quality within legal limits.
“Scotland’s car-choked transport system was brought to a halt in spring, and this is why our annual averages of pollution are much lower than previous years.
“Any improvements in air quality in Scotland have been short-lived with traffic quickly returning to pre-pandemic levels.
“We need to remember that pollution damages our health through long-term exposure, such as living near a main road throughout your childhood.
“The reduced pollution for a couple of months during the strictest lockdown is unlikely to have many long-term health benefits.”
He called for stronger efforts to clean up the air and protect public health.
He added: “The government and councils must seize this moment to rethink how we plan our towns and cities, and how we move around.
“Temporary improvements in air quality arrived at an enormous cost to our communities and societies,” Mr Thomson added.