POLLUTION HOTSPOTS IN THE UK

SOME of the cities that exceed World Health Organisation limits for the smallest pollution particles (PM2.5) — the limit is 10 micrograms per cubic metre — according to a report in 2017 by the Lancet Countdown and the Royal College of Physicians . . .

Glasgow= 16 mcg Eastbourne, Leeds, London, Southampton

= 15 mcg

Birmingham, Cardiff, Oxford, Stoke-on-Trent

= 14 mcg

Belfast, Liverpool, York, Nottingham = 12 mcg Middlesbrough = 11 mcg PM2.5 pollution is worse in cities, but even people who live in the countryside or in smaller towns or in villages can be exposed to high levels if they sit in traffic jams or burn an open fire, says Professor Frank Kelly. PM2.5 can travel large distances and ammonia, which contributes to PM2.5, is also generated in rural areas.