Scottish Government LAQM Training Day 13th February 2009

AQMRC and Air Quality Consultants are running a Local Air Quality Management training day on behalf of the Scottish Government (for Scottish Local Authority Officers). The training events will cover updates to Technical and Policy Guidance, useful tips for undertaking Review & Assessment reports, an introduction to the Review & Assessment Online Report Submission Tool and advice for air quality action planning.

Scottish Government LAQM training day 13th February 2009 (click here for more details and registration form).

South West EP-UK & AQMRC 11th Annual Conference

***Note date change above***
Keep 26th February 2009 free in your diary! We're back to Bristol Zoo for the 11th Annual South West Environmental Protection UK and AQMRC Conference. The theme of the conference is Environmental Indicators, where next? The conference will address local authority environmental indicators (e.g. air quality, climate change, land, noise, etc). Detail agenda to follow shortly.

Sustainable Urban Transport Seminar

UWE and Bristol Environmental Technologies& Services (http://www.bristol.gov.uk/ccm/content/Environment-Planning/Regeneration/bristol-environmental-technologies-and-services.en) Networking Seminar
 
 The presentations from this very well attended seminar held on the 17^th November are now available.  Click on the links below to see the PowerPoint presentation of Jose Marquez, Graham Parkhurst and Steve Ward.    

 

• Technologies for Sustainable Transport - Dr Jose Marquez   Egis Mobilité
  
  
• Lessons and Reflections on Recent Developments in Sustainable Urban Transport – Professor  Graham Parkhurst, UWE, Centre for Transport and Society (http://www.transport.uwe.ac.uk/)
• The UWE Travel Plan - Steve Ward

This seminar was hosted by the Faculty of Environment and Technology (http://www.uwe.ac.uk/et/) and Research, Business and Innovation (http://rbi.uwe.ac.uk/internet/Research/researchatuwe/), University of the West of England, in collaboration with Egis Mobilité

Congratulations to Mofoluso Fagbeja on passing his Progression Viva.

See Mo’s work on his research web site at http://www.uwe.ac.uk/aqm/mofoluso.html

 

Congratulations to Dotun Olowoporoku on passing the Outline Thesis stage of his PhD.

See Dotun’s work on his research web site at http://www.uwe.ac.uk/aqm/dotun.html

 

Congratulations to Simon Baldwin on passing the Outline Thesis stage of his PhD.

See Simon’s work on his research web site at http://www.uwe.ac.uk/aqm/simon.html

UKPHA Launch of Climate Connections

On Tuesday 2nd December, Tim attended the launch of the UKPHA's Climate Connections programme, presenting a number of posters highlighting the work that AQMRC  and others are involved in in linking climate Change with Air Quality and other health issues.  

The posters can be viewed here:

AQ, Climate Change and Health - Why?

AQ, Climate Change and Health - How? 

 

The Climate Connection project is an initiative aimed at bringing public health work into the heart of the fight to combat climate change. The launch was chaired by Prof. David Harper from the Department of Health and included contributions from Sir Liam Donaldson (Chief Medical Officer) and Professor John Beddington (Government Chief Scientific Adviser) and was attended by senior members from all the regional public health communities.

 

Further details of the Climate Connection work can be found here: www.climateconnections.org

 

and the programme has also developed the wonderfully entertaining www.carbonaddict.org website.

Latest Newsletter of the European Federation Clean Air and Environmental Protection Associations (EFCA)

The latest EFCA (www.efca.net) newsletter is now available on-line.  This edition contains a lot of material  relating to the co-management of air quality and climate change, including an extensive report on he recent EFCA symposium in Strasbourg which should be making a real contribution to bringing the issues of air pollution and co-benefits to the climate change debating tables this week in Poznan, and next year in Copenhagen.  For further details please download the newsletter here.

 

(AQMRC, is proud to be involved in the production of the newsletter and to support the work of EFCA).

Nurul at Better Air Quality Workshop 2008

Nurul presented 2 posters at the Better Air Quality Workshop 2008 in Bangkok on 12-14 November 2008. The titles of the posters are: a) Applying lessons from local air quality management consultation to climate change, and b) The potential impact from increased use of wood-fuelled biomass to loca air quality in London: lessons to exchange with mega-cities in Asian countries. The posters were well received. The main message from the Workshop is the integration of air quality and climate change particularly in relation to transport sector!

AQMRC article published in Atmospheric Environment

The AQMRC are pleased to announce the publication of their paper, "The development of effects-based air quality management regimes", in the forthcoming issue of Atmospheric Environment. The article may be accessed via the journal website www.elsevier.com/locate/atmosenv.

Longhurst, J.W.S., Irwin, J.G, Chatterton, T.J., Hayes, E.T., Leksmono, N.S. and Symons, J.K., (2009). The development of effects-based air quality management regimes, Atmospheric Environment, 43, 64-78. [doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2008.09.050]

AQMRC Air Quality and Climate Change Seminars

This morning saw the first of a series of Monday morning seminars presented by the Air Quality Management Resource Centre's staff and PhD students. Professor Jim Longhurst entertained a packed auditorium with his take on 'Air quality in historical perspective', reflecting on lessons that may be learnt and the length of time it takes to learn them!

The next seminar on 15th December will be given by Dr Tim Chatterton, who will be speaking on 'South Africa's National Framework on air quality' and exploring UWE's role in an exemplar of integrated environmental governance.

Further details are available on this seminar schedule. If you are interested in attending this or any of the future seminars (or just fancy a free croissant and coffee!) please notify aqmrc@uwe.ac.uk in advance.

Simon and Jim present at first annual GWR Research Symposium

Professor Jim Longhurst and PhD student Simon Baldwin gave presentations to a large audience at 'Future Imperfect': the first annual Great Western Research Symposium. Simon presented in the Sustainability Workshop on the opportunities and barriers to the 'Integration of air quality and climate change at a regional and local governance level'.  He also presented a poster on the same subject during the lunchtime interval.  Jim, speaking in the main Plenary Session, had the slightly more challenging task of discussing 'Major environmental challenges and responses' in which he examined some of the major environmental issues of current and future generations.

Nurul attends Better Air Quality Workshop 2008

Nurul will be presenting 2 posters at the Better Air Quality Workshop 2008, which will be held in Bangkok on 12-14 November 2008. The workshop theme is "Air Quality and Climate Change: scaling up win-win solutions for Asia," representing two important trends that are shaping the future direction of urban air quality management in Asia. Nurul will share the experience of local authorities on Local Air Quality Management consultation to Asian colleagues and the transferability of the research outcomes to other locally based environmental management issues. The posters are entitled "Applying lessons from local air quality management consultation to climate change" and "The potential impact from increased use of wood-fuelled biomass to local air quality in London: lessons to exchange with mega-cities in Asian countries.

Sustainable Urban Transport Seminar

Sustainable Urban Transport:Bristol Environmental Technologies& Services (BETS) Networking Seminar

Date: Monday, 17 November, 2008
Time: 17:30 - 19:45
Venue: Street Café, Frenchay Campus, BS16 1QY
Cost: Free of charge

Programme:
1730: Registration and light refreshments1800: Welcome - Professor James Longhurst, Co-Director, Institute for Sustainability, Health and Environment
1810: Technologies for Sustainable Transport - Dr Jose Marquez and Martin Volny, Egis Mobilité
1830: Lessons and Reflections on Recent Developments in Sustainable Urban Transport - Dr Graham Parkhurst, UWE
1850: The UWE Travel Plan - Steve Ward
1910: Thanks and Close - Professor James Longhurst, Co-Director, Institute for Sustainability, Health and Environment
1915: Networking
1945: Close

This event is hosted by the Faculty of Environment and Technology and Research, Business and Innovation, University of the West of England, in collaboration with Egis Mobilité.
You can register for the event here
Or for further information, please contact:Tel 0117 32 82808Email rbi@uwe.ac.uk

Defra LAQM TG08 consultation meeting

Consultation responses to the new LAQM Technical Guidance were reviewed and appraised at a meeting of air quality consultants and government representatives at the Defra offices in London last week. Around 25 in-depth responses were gratefully received and the points raised were laboriously discussed and debated to create a useful and workable set of guidance for local government. The document will be reworked and completed over the next couple of months with a provisional deadline for publication before Christmas. Join the Review and Assesment mailing list to receive email notification of further updates on LAQM Guidance.

EP-UK: 'Local Action on Air Quality and Climate Change'

Environmental Protection UK held their training event: Local Action on Air Quality and Climate Change at the Aston Business Centre in Birmingham last Wednesday. The sell-out meeting was attended by Jo Barnes, on behalf of the AQMRC, and included a range of interesting speakers from central and local government, consultancies, industry and lobbyists. Presentations are available from the EP-UK website http://www.environmental-protection.org.uk/events/details/?id=1234.

Interreg IV - PARM

Jo Barnes represented the AQMRC last week at a meeting of potential western UK partners of a major new INTERREG IV project: Partuculates Air Rives Manche (PARM). The multi-million euro investigation links air quality experts in northern France and southern England to monitor particulates (PM10 and PM2.5) and disseminate data, best practice and public awareness materials. Other potential western partners include the Air Quality Unit at Cornwall College, Cornwall Council, Teignbridge District Council, Torbay District Council, Weymouth & Portland District Council and Plymouth City Council. The eastern contingent are represented by EP-UK, Sussex Air Quality Partnership and Kent District Council. The project bid will be submitted in February 2009, so watch this space for further information...

Global visitor distribution map

Visitors click here to see the latest global distribution of interest in our work. Please drop us a line if you were one of our global visitors and tell us what you liked (or didn't!) about our site. Email aqmrc@uwe.ac.uk.

Tim is invited participant in major Asian Governance workshop

Tim has gone to the Philippines to participate in a workshop funded by the Asia-Europe Foundation and the Eastern Regional Organization for Public Administration (EROPA).

The workshop is part of a move to develop a pan-Asian higher education curriculum for teaching environmental governance.

 

http://ecogov.blogspot.com/2007/08/asia-europe-workshop-towards.html

 

Tim will be presenting aspects of AQMRC's work in relation to South Africa and Asia, as well as discussing the special role of academia within environmental governance and the current work for Herda developing higher education materials for air quality and carbon management.

 

The workshop is being held as part of a major conference looking at 3 core aspects of governance in Asia "Governance in a Triptych: Environment, Migration, and Peace and Order"

Air Quality & Carbon Management Project Steering Group

AQMRC welcome members of Air Quality & Carbon Management Project Steering Group for the first Steering Group meeting which will be held on 16th October 2008 at UWE. This project, funded by HERDA-SW, will develop training materials on the subjects of air quality and carbon management to meet the higher level skills needs of air quality professionals. Members of the Steering Group are Prof. Bernard Fisher (the Institute of Air Quality Management), Ed Dearnley (Environmental Protection UK), Dr Nick Davey (entran Ltd) and representatives of South West Local Authorities - Steve Crawshaw (Bristol City Council), Denise Powell (Gloucestershire Pollution Group), and Sarah Hodgson (Teignbridge District Council).

Jim in Science Cafes - October 27th at the Tobacco Factory

Jim will be speaking about Air Quality Management at the Tobacco Factory on 27th October, at 7.30pm. His talk will discuss why, when we know so much about the cause and composition of air quality problems, are we not making more progress in improving air quality?

Science Cafes are informal and free meetings to explore the latest ideas in science and technology.

Click here to get directions to the Tobacco Factory.

Enda attends NACA Conference in South Africa

Enda presented two papers at the 16th International Union of Air Pollution Prevention and Environmental Protection Associations (IUAPPA) regional conference in association with the annual meeting of the National Association for Clean Air (NACA) in South Africa last  week. The conference was held from 1st - 3rd October near the Kruger National Park under the theme of "Where did all the Clean Air go?". Enda presented papers co-authored with AQMRC colleagues  entitled: "Ten years of air quality management in the UK: A model for the South African National Framework on air quality" and "The potential impact from increased use of wood-fuelled biomass on local air quality in London: Lessons to exchange with mega-cities in developing countries". Enda was also invited to sit on an IUAPPA special panel on "Linking air pollution and climate change: The challenge for Africa".

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Air Pollution 2008 - Jim's opening address

Air Pollution 2008
Sixteenth International Conference on Modelling, Monitoring and Management of Air Pollution
22-24th September 2008
Skiathos, Greece.

Read conference co-Chair Jim Longhurst's opening address to the Air Pollution 2008 conference here.

AQMRC Responds to Consultations

This autumn has seen a frenzy of consultation deadlines, and over last week AQMRC has sent in responses to the consultations on the new UK LAQM Guidance and the National Health Service Carbon Reduction Strategy.  For further information on our views, please contact us at aqmrc@uwe.ac.uk

Enda presents...IUAPPA - NACA conference South Africa

Dr Enda Hayes will be presenting two papers at the 16th International Union of Air Pollution Prevention and Environmental Protection Associations (IUAPPA) regional conference in association with the annual meeting of the National Association for Clean Air (NACA) in South Africa this week. The conference will be held from 1st - 3rd October near the beautiful Kruger National Park under the theme of "Where did all the Clean Air go?". Enda will be presenting papers entitled: "Ten years of air quality management in the UK: A model for the South African National Framework on air quality" and "The potential impact from increased use of wood-fuelled biomass on local air quality in London: Lessons to exchange with mega-cities in developing countries". Photos have been promised...as promised.

Research showcase posters

The Sustainable Energy and the Environment Research Showcase at Bath University on Wednesday 17th September was a resounding success with hundreds of delegates attending from academia and industry. The event provided a perfect opportunity for dissemination of the broad range of PhD and research projects currently being undertaken by the AQMRC.

Click on the following titles to link to the posters posted on the AQMRC website:

Integrated Management of Nitrogen Dioxide in Wales (Ross Hunter);
Innovative Learning Opportunities to Build Capacity and Capability in Air Quality and Carbon Management (Nurul Leksmono);
Progress, Barriers and Opportunities for the Co-management of Air Pollution and Carbon Emissions in South West England (Simon Baldwin);
Applying Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques to Air Quality and Carbon Management - a Case Study of Gas Flaring in the Niger Delta (Mofoluso Fagbeja);
Carbon Management at the City Scale: An Exploration of the Carbon Futures for the Bristol Region (Rose Bailey);
Managing Air Quality through the Local Planning Process: Challenges, Barriers and Opportunities (Dotun Olowoporoku).

Air Pollution 2008 Skiathos, Greece, 22-24 September

The 16th annual conference on Air Pollution Modelling, Monitoring and Management opens on Monday 22nd September. Organised by the Wessex Institute of Technology and co-chaired by Professor Carlos Brebbia of WIT and AQMRC's Professor Jim Longhurst, this conference will debate contemporary issues in the science and management of air pollution. AQMRC will be well represented at the conference with research students Dotun Olowoporoku , Simon Baldwin and Mofoluso Fagbeja presenting at their first international conference. Visiting Professor Jimi Irwin and Jim Longhurst will also be presenting.

The following papers will be published in the conference book published in hard back by WIT Press:

J.W.S. Longhurst, J.G. Irwin, T.J. Chatterton, E.T. Hayes, N.S. Leksmono &J.K. Symons (2008, forthcoming). The Development and Operation of the United Kingdom’s Air Quality Management Regime. In Brebbia, C.A. & Longhurst, J.W.S. (Editors) Air Pollution XVI. WIT Press. Southampton and Boston.

M.A., Fagbeja, T. Chatterton, J.W.S. Longhurst, J.O. Akinyede & J.O. Adegoke (2008, forthcoming). Air pollution and management in the Niger Delta - emerging issues. In Brebbia, C.A. & Longhurst, J.W.S. (Editors) Air Pollution XVI. WIT Press. Southampton and Boston.

S.T. Baldwin, M. Everard, E.T. Hayes, J.W.S. Longhurst & J.R. Merefield (2008, forthcoming) Integrating local air quality and carbon management at a regional and local governance level: a case study of south west England. In Brebbia, C.A. & Longhurst, J.W.S. (Editors) Air Pollution XVI. WIT Press. Southampton and Boston.

A.O. Olowoporoku, E. T. Hayes, N.S. Leksmono, J.W.S. Longhurst, & G. P. Parkhurst (2008, forthcoming) Are environmental health officers and transport planners in English local authorities working together to achieve air quality objectives? In Brebbia, C.A. & Longhurst, J.W.S. (Editors) Air Pollution XVI. WIT Press. Southampton and Boston.

I. Gegisian, M. Grey, J.W.S. Longhurst & J.G. Irwin (2008, forthcoming) Potential contribution of local air quality management to environmental justice in England. In Brebbia, C.A. & Longhurst, J.W.S. (Editors) Air Pollution XVI. WIT Press. Southampton and Boston.

Sustainable Energy and the Environment Research Showcase

The AQMRC and PhD students will be presenting eight posters of their research at the Sustainable Energy and the Environment Research Showcase at Bath University on Wednesday 17th September www.bath.ac.uk/engineering/showcase/ . The event will showcase a range of innovative and cutting-edge research in sustainable energy and the environment, including: climate change, energy demand reduction, energy infrastructure, integration and economics, energy storage, healthy environments, integrated appraisal of low carbon energy technologies, energy sources, vehicle and transportation systems, sustainable fuels, power generation and supply.

AQMRC research presented will cover:

A National Framework for Air Quality in South Africa (Tim Chatterton);

Ten Years of Local Air Quality Management: Lessons for Regulation and Practice (Enda Hayes);

Innovative Learning Opportunities to Build Capacity and Capability in Air Quality and Carbon Management (Nurul Leksmono);

Integrated Management of Nitrogen Dioxide in Wales (Ross Hunter);

Progress, Barriers and Opportunities for the Co-management of Air Pollution and Carbon Emissions in South West England (Simon Baldwin);
Applying Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques to Air Quality and Carbon Management - a Case Study of Gas Flaring in the Niger Delta (Mofoluso Fagbeja);
Carbon Management at the City Scale: An Exploration of the Carbon Futures for the Bristol Region (Rose Bailey);
Managing Air Quality through the Local Planning Process: Challenges, Barriers and Opportunities (Dotun Olowoporoku).

RSC Environmental Chemistry Group

Jo Barnes, Honorary Secretary of the Royal Society of Chemistry's Environmental Chemistry Committee, attended their 152nd meeting at Burlington House, Piccadilly on Wednesday 3rd September. Topics of discussion included the forthcoming annual Distinguished Guest Lecture on 4th March 2009 entitled 'The Future of Water'; preparation for a student seminar on Atmospheric Chemistry next spring; and a Contaminated Land meeting planned for the autumn. Details of forthcoming events will appear on the website http://www.rsc.org/Membership/Networking/InterestGroups/Environmental/index.asp along with other information about the ECG, including back copies of their bi-annual Bulletin newsletter.

Jo has been acting as Hon. Sec. for this eminent Interest Group for the last three years and is pleased to continue the role with the support of the AQMRC.

AQB website review

Air quality webnerds everywhere wept for joy (or otherwise) as the much anticipated annual Air Quality Bulletin website review was published today. Sadly the AQMRC website dwindled into 17th place due to its blindingly "brash red colour" while South Yorks Care4Air (http://www.care4air.org/) clinched the top slot despite a gibe from editor, Jack Pease, over their colour scheme. The CAQF website (http://www.caqf.org.uk/) was a new entry to the top twenty with its all new look and updated content, and [suspiciously!] the AQB website managed to make the top ten! We're not envious - just basking in the subtle shades of their website!!

New recruit at AQMRC

Jo Barnes has recently joined the Air Quality Management Resource Centre (AQMRC) at UWE as a Research Associate following a very enjoyable and rewarding four-year "apprenticeship" at the Air Quality Unit (AQU) at Cornwall College. Despite frequent allusions to her apparent lack of sanity, Jo has left the balmy climes of Falmouth and set up home in drizzly "Brizzle"!

Tim writes piece for Environmental Health News

Tim was invited to write an opinion piece for Environmental Health News on the need to balance the climate change agenda with public health and other environmental issues.  The piece was published in EHN on 15th February and can be accessed on the website of the Chartered Institute for Environmental Health here.

AQMRC Contributes to SEPHO report on Transport and Public Health

The AQMRC has helped the South East Public Health Observatory compile a section on air pollution in its new report "Choosing Health in the South East: Road Transport and Public Health".  The report can be downloaded from the SEPHO website here.

 

AQMRC hosts successful Environmental Protection UK National Student Showcase

AQMRC hosted a very successful National Student Showcase for the charity Environmental Protection UK  on 31^st July. The day consisted of a number of presentations from students representing various UK universities, and covered a variety of environmental topics. AQMRC PhD students were well represented: Simon Baldwin presented his research on integrating carbon management and local air quality management, Dotun Olowoporoku presented his research on managing local air quality through local transport planning, and Rose Bailey introduced her research on carbon management in Bristol. Other student presentations covered the subjects of hydrogen deposition and geothermal energy. The winner of the competition was Ben Williams from Portsmouth University, who presented on the development of an empirical dust dispersion model based on sample geochemistry. Ben will be presenting his work at the Environmental protection UK conference in February 2009.

 

Environmental Protection UK National Student Showcase

The Air Quality Management Resource Centre, UWE has a long standing history of working closely with the national environmental charity - Environmental Protection UK . Part of that working relationship includes hosting the Environmental Protection UK National Student Day in which students from UK institutions are given the opportunity to present their research which covers a range of environmental issues.

This years event is in Room 2L4 on Thursday 31st of July starting at 11am. Please come along if any of the topics tweaks your interest.

Speaker and topics include (this may not be the order of presentations on the day):
1) Rose Bailey (UWE) - Carbon management at the city scale: An exploration of the carbon futures for the Bristol region.
2) Simon Baldwin (UWE) - Integrating local air quality and carbon management at a local and regional governance level.
3) Aoife Grant (Bristol University) - Calculation of the deposition velocity of hydrogen and their use in regional and global climate prediction models.
4) Dotun Olowoporoku (UWE) - Managing local air quality through Local Transport Planning - are we there yet?
5) John Taylor (University of Exeter) - To what extent can geothermal resources contribute to sustainable development at the community scale?
6) Ben Williams (Portsmouth University) - The development of an empirical dust dispersion model based on sample geochemistry.

UWE now ranked third in UK for sustainability

UWE has jumped five places in People and Planet's league table for sustainable universities and is now ranked THIRD out of all (>120) UK Universities. The assessment criteria are updated every year to reflect the great improvements being made in environmental policies and performance in the UK Higher Education system, and to help drive further improvements and the turning of policies into actions.  This year the assessment was made over 9 key indicators:

Management and Policy
- Publicly available environmental policy
- Full-time environment staff
- Comprehensive environmental auditing
- Fairtrade University accreditation
- Ethical investment policy

Performance
- Energy sources
- Percentage of waste recycled
- Carbon emissions per head
- Water consumption per head

 

More information on UWE's performance

http://info.uwe.ac.uk/news/UWENews/article.asp?item=1302&year=2008

The full People and Planet league table

http://peopleandplanet.org/gogreen/greenleague2008

Air Pollution and Meteorological Data @ UWE

Following the recent installation of pollution monitors at the University, air quality and meteorological is now available online from the UWE website. Simply go to our homepage www.uwe.ac.uk/aqm and use the buttons Weather@UWE and Pollution@UWE to go to the data of your choice.

Dotun to present at TPM 2008

Dotun had his paper accepted by Planning and Transport, Research and Computation (PTRC) the organisers of the 6th annual Transport Practitioners Meeting (TPM) 2008 in Reading. Dotun will be speaking at the conference on 16th of July, 2008 to a broad range of transport engineers, planners and urban transport designers on some of the findings of his research.

Consultation - draft LAQM Policy & Technical Guidance

The New Policy Guidance and Technical Guidance on local air quality management are out for consultation. All UK local authorities are invited to comment by 26 September 2008.
Please follow this link for more information and to download the guidance documents: http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/airqualitymanage-guidance/

Simon delivered presentation at Environment Agency Air Quality Conference - 24 June 2008

Simon gave a presentation at the annual Air Quality Conference held by the Environment Agency at Aston University, Birmingham. The presentation focused on the importance of collaboration between professionals working in the field of air quality and carbon management and presented the main conclusions of his first round of questionnaires. The presentation was well received by the audience of air quality experts and practitioners. Other presentation on the agenda included: policy updates for air quality management; dealing with air quality in major incidents; and future scenarios for climate change and air quality.

"Chatterton" in AQB Double Page Spread

Following his recent presentation to June's IAPSC meeting in London on the growth of Air Quality Management Areas, the presentation and an additional interview with AQB editor Jack Pease formed the basis of a double page feature article in July's Air Quality Bulletin (http://www.empublishing.org.uk/air/)  In the article "Chatterton" (as he is constantly referred to as) describes the problems of reporting AQMA statistics, describes the progressive growth in AQMAs and the reasons why we still keep on needing more, and makes some predictions for the future about what will happen next.....

 

AQMRC, UWE in Top 20 Consultancies

A recent ranking of UK air quality consultancies carried out by Air Quality Bulletin ( http://www.empublishing.org.uk/air/ ) has ranked AQMRC, UWE in the top 20 (of over 50 consultancies).  The rankings are based solely on self-reported numbers of "full-time equivalent people working on AQ - excluding technical and support staff" and so placings must be interpreted with caution as quantity may not necessarily relate to quantity.  We believe however that the rating demonstrates we have a strong capacity within the AQ field, yet remain compact enough to retain a personal touch and gain the benefits of working in a closely co-ordinated environment.

Launch of the Institute for Sustainability, Health and Environment

The University of the West of England celebrates the launch of a new Research and Knowledge Exchange Institute, the Institute for Sustainability, Health and Environment (ISHE), that brings together the research expertise from three distinct areas of expertise for which UWE has become renowned.

The new Institute will work with over 100 organisations and agencies in its Sustainability, Health and Environment work and will be able to draw upon expertise from 32 Research Centres and over 600 programmes of study offered by UWE. The new Institute's expertise will cover public and environmental health; spatial and transport planning; leisure, tourism and society; sustainable and healthy communities; governance and democracy; air quality management; low carbon technology and management; environmental science; environmental justice; plant science; biomedicine, clinical and health services. ISHE will be Co-directed by Professor Jim Longhurst (Associate Dean in the Faculty of Environment and Technology, and Director of the Air Quality Management Resource Centre) and Judy Orme (Reader and Director of the Centre for Public Health Research in the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences).

Professor Jim Longhurst explains, “We have noticed an increasing synergy in projects that blend health and the environment. The new Institute will enable us to strengthen our international reputation in these key research areas. These areas are critically important to society as we all strive towards a lower carbon lifestyle in the future.

Focusing on health and wellbeing in later life, a conference entitled 'Sustainable Futures in an Ageing World' will be held at UWE in September. For more details of the Institute visit http://www.uwe.ac.uk/research/ishe.

Rose and Mofoluso attend 44th IAPSC Conference

Rose and Mofoluso also attended the 44th Investigation of Air Pollution Standing Conference, at the School of African and Oriental Studies in London on Wednesday 11th June. The conference covered topics including emergency responses to incidents affecting air quality; transport; and LAQM, including the results of a recent report on biomass combustion in London. Copies of the presentations from the conference will shortly be available on the IAPSC website http://www.iapsc.org.uk/

Rose attends Bristol: Fit for the Future? Panel Discussion

To mark World Environment Day on 5th June, city leaders and environmental experts came together to discuss publicly what further action Bristol could take to respond to the environmental challenges of the 21st century. The discussion considered what government, business, the public and voluntary sectors, architects, developers and planners are doing and can do to help Bristol cope with climate change, tackle transport issues and congestion and create truly sustainable homes and communities. Rose attended the debate, along with representatives from local government, universities, businesses, community groups and the public. More information on the evening can be found here:
http://www.bristol.gov.uk/ccm/content/press-releases/2008/jun/green-capital-debate.en and the debate can also be viewed online as a webcast here: http://www.bristol.public-i.tv/site/index.php?l=en_GB

Rose Facilitates Table Discussion at Bristol Hothouse

Rose attended the Bristol Hothouse on 3rd June, and facilitated a discussion on sustainable waste management options for the city. The event, organised by Bristol City Council and supported by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and E.ON UK, brought together professionals, designers and civic leaders to debate Bristol's ambition to be a sustainable city.

Rose attends UKCIP08 workshop

Rose attended a workshop on 2nd June in Taunton, on using the new UKCIP08 climate prediction scenarios. The workshop was run by the UK Climate Impacts Programme and hosted by the South West Climate Change Impacts Partnership. UKCIP08 will provide information and give probabilities of current and projected future climate change for the UK up to 2099, using the UK Met Office Hadley Centre scientists' latest understanding of how the climate system operates and how it might change in the future, to better quantify some of the uncertainties associated with climate modelling. It is hoped that the information provided by UKCIP08 will make users better informed to be able to assess the potential impacts of climate change and make robust adaptation decisions.

Tim Presents at 44th IAPSC Conference

Tim made a presentation on "Air Quality Management Areas in the UK" to the 44th Investigation of Air Pollution Standing Conference, at the School of African and Oriental Studies in London on Wednesday 11th June.  The presentation covered the growth in AQMA declarations in the United Kingdom since the establishment of the Local Air Quality Management process in 1997.  Apart from updates on the LAQM process other topics discussed included response and analysis of major pollution incidents, and presentations from the Highways Agency and DfT.  Copies of the presentations from the conference will shortly be available on the IAPSC website http://www.iapsc.org.uk/

Air Pollution 2009 - Call for papers

Wessex Institute of Technology, UK are calling for papers for presentation at the Seventeenth International Conference on Modelling, Monitoring and Management of Air Pollution. The conference will be held in Tallinn, Estonia on 20-22 July 2009.

Topics for presentation are:
- Air pollution modelling
- Energy and air quality
- Air quality management
- Urban air management
- Effects of air pollution on ecosystems
- Emission studies
- Historical air pollution and forensic studies
- Monitoring and measuring
- Global and regional studies
- Aerosols and particles
- Climate change and air pollution
- Indoor air pollution
- Environmental health effects
- Policy studies
- Techniques for atmospheric pollutant reduction
- Pollution prevention
- Pollution in developing countries

Click here to view the conference website, which has full details about the conference objectives, topics and submission requirements etc.

EU Policy news alert

The latest EU policy news alert thematic issue is on air quality and emissions trading. Click here for more details on the monthly issue and to find out more about the new alerts.

Simon to be ambassador for UWE at the Bristol Festival of Nature

Simon will be part of a team representing the University of the West of England at the Bristol Festival of Nature on 7-8th June 2008. The team will share the research tent with the University of Bristol where they will showcase some of the excellent environmental projects and research undertaken by both universities.

AQMRC bids farewell to Jo

After two years with AQMRC Jo is on her way home to NZ. Jo has made a big contribution to our work and we will miss her. Everyone in AQMRC wishes Jo well. Before returning home Jo is bravely taking to the roads of France and Italy and cycling from the Atlantic coast to Sicily. We wish her well on this exciting journey and look forward to getting postcards from along the route.

AQMRC submits 5 papers for Air Pollution 2008 conference

The AQMRC team have submitted 5 papers for the Wessex Institute of Technology Air Pollution 2008 conference, to be held in Skiathos, Greece, on 22-24 September 2008.
The paper details are as follows:

"The Development and Operation of the United Kingdom’s Air Quality Management Regime"
J.W.S. Longhurst, J.G. Irwin, T.J. Chatterton, E.T. Hayes, N.S. Leksmono and J.K. Symons

"Exploring the impact of shipping on coastal air quality: Is there a local air quality problem?"
J.K. Symons, S.T. Baldwin, T.J. Chatterton, E.T. Hayes, N.S. Leksmono, J.W.S. Longhurst

"Air pollution and management in the Niger Delta - emerging isues"
M.A., Fagbeja, T. Chatterton, J.W.S. Longhurst, J.O. Akinyede, and J.O. Adegoke

"Integrating local air quality and carbon management at a regional and local governance level: a case study of south west England"
S.T. Baldwin, M. Everard, E.T. Hayes, J.W.S. Longhurst, J.R.Merefield

"Are environmental health officers and transport planners in English local authorities working together to achieve air quality objectives?"
A.O. Olowoporoku, E. T. Hayes, N.S. Leksmono, J.W.S. Longhurst, G. P. Parkhurst

Invitation to: Not a Bore! Issues of tidal energy capture in the Severn Estuary

Publication by the Sustainable Development Commission of its report on Tidal Power in the UK in October 2007 has been followed by the government’s recent announcement of a Feasibility Study on Tidal Power Developments in the Severn Estuary and a call for evidence on the environmental and other implications of tidal power generation there.

Organised by the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce), the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA), the Severn Estuary Partnership and the Centre for Research in Environmental Sciences, UWE, this Science Café event provides a timely opportunity to explore the issues such a development would raise. What are the key issues and what are the impacts of developing tidal power in the Severn Estuary? What are your views on the options or the idea of harnessing energy from the estuary? Is this an appropriate way to reduce carbon emissions? What about the ecological impacts? Is this appropriate regional development?

The event will comprise of four short scene setting presentations exploring the engineering, legal and planning issues and the environmental implications of harnessing tidal power from the estuary. A general discussion will follow.

Come along to this event and share your views and ideas. The outcomes from this event will help shape the agenda of a larger Public Forum being planned for October of this year.

Invitation to:
Not a Bore! Issues of Tidal Energy Capture in the Severn Estuary
OneZone
Room 2E27UWE,
Frenchay Campus
6 – 7.30 pm Monday June 30th
(Campus map at http://www.uwe.ac.uk/maps/frenchay_map.shtml)

To Book a Place

This event is FREE of charge but please register by emailing Alison.Jack@uwe.ac.uk

Light refreshments will be provided by the organisers and a cash bar will be available.

Further information about the feasibility study can be found at
http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/sources/renewables/explained/severntidalpower/page41473.html

AQMRC in the UWE news

Some of our work has recently been reported in the UWE bulletin. Click here to see AQMRC and other news from the University of the West of England.

Mofoluso to present paper at Postgraduate Researchers' Conference

Mofoluso submitted a paper for the Sixteenth International Conference on Modelling, Monitoring and management of Air Pollution (Air Pollution 2008 Conference) coming up 22-24 September 2008 in Skiathos, Greece. The paper is titled, 'Air pollution and management in the Niger Delta - emerging issues'. Further details of Mofoluso's research can be found here.
Mofoluso is also attending the 1st Postgraduate Researchers' Conference on Meeting Environmental Challenges in the Coastal region of Nigeria coming up 29-30 September, 2008 in Dundee, UK. The abstract from his paper titled, 'Applying remote sensing and GIS techniques to air quality and carbon management - a case study of gas flaring in the Niger Delta' has been accepted for presentation at the conference.

Mobility and Climate Change

Tim has been asked to participate in a workshop on at the Joint Meeting of the Eurocities' Environment and Mobility Forums in London next week. The workshop on Tuesday 3rd June will consider the actions needed to be taken to tackle the problems of urban Mobility and Climate Change.

More information on the work of Eurocities ( "THE network of Major European Cities" ) can be found here http://www.eurocities.org/main.php

Jim busy with external examinations

Jim has a busy season of PhD external and internal examining in prospect. He has been invited to examine theses from Northumbria University and Imperial College. He will also be an internal examiner for a UWE PhD thesis.

Bristol Environmental Technologies & Services Sector Expo

Bristol Environmental Technologies & Services Sector (BETS) Expo will be held in Bristol in June 2008. AQMRC will be contributing to the low carbon advice session being hosted by UWE on day one of the Expo. The Expo is organised by the BETS Partnership Board to showcase the wide range of environmental technology and service expertise in the Bristol Region. Jim Longhurst represents UWE on the BETS Partnership Board.

Simon runs seminar at the University of Exeter

Simon visited the University of Exeter on the 14th May 2008 to hold a seminar on integrating air quality and carbon management at a local governance level. A number of key stakeholders in the subject area were in attendance which provided a great opportunity for Simon to obtain feedback on the interim findings of his research. After his presentation Simon facilitated a workshop session based on three key themes highlighted in his research findings: Inter-professional collaboration; the role of local, national and international governments; and horizon scanning.

The Nigerian State, Oil Industry and the Niger Delta

Mofoluso recently attended the 1st International Conference on the “The Nigerian State, Oil Industry and the Niger Delta”, organised by the Department of Political Science, Niger Delta University in collaboration with Centre for Applied Environmental Research (CEAR) of the University of Missouri, Kansas City (UMKC). The conference was held at the Gloryland Centre in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State in Southern Nigeria. Further details of the conference are available on Mofoluso's research page.

AQMRC researchers submit invited paper for special issue of Atmospheric Environment

AQMRC researchers have submitted their invited paper for the 50th anniversary issue of Atmospheric Environment, entitled "A critical review of, and commentary on, the development of an effects based air quality management regime". The paper draws on air quality management examples and experiences from around the globe, with a case study of air quality management in the UK. The special issue should be published later this year and will be available from the elsevier website.

Air Pollution 2008

The deadline for paper submissions to the Wessex Institute of Technology conference 'Air Pollution 2008' is 21 May 2008. Click here for further information. The 16th annual conference dealing with modelling, monitoring and management of air pollution will be held this year in Skiathos, Greece on 22-24 September and will be co-chaired by Jim Longhurst. AQMRC are submitting several papers for inclusion in the conference proceedings, including submissions from Dotun Olowoporoku and Simon Baldwin related to their PhD research.

Tim invited to join the International Advisory Committee for the IUAPPA Regional Conference 2008

This years conference will be held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the National Association for Clean Air of South Africa. The IUAPPA Regional Conference will focus on the development of Air Quality Management systems at local, national and regional scales. Special sessions will include comparative experience of national air quality management systems; integrating air pollution and climate change abatement strategies; and transport and air quality in emerging mega-cities.

Jim speaking at BA Science Communication Conference

The British Association is holding its annual Science Communication Conference on 19 - 20 May 2008. As part of the conference, the BA are running a session in which those involved in relevant studies engage with the science communication community, so that practical science communicators c
an be aware of and draw on the latest research. The abstract from Jim's presentation is available here.

Jim is participating in the Conference following the AQMRC "Consultation as Science Communication?" project, to communicate this research with attending practitioners.

AQMRC welcomes Rose Bailey- new EPSRC CASE PhD student

Rose joined AQMRC in May 2008 to study for a PhD entitled Carbon Management at the City Scale: An Exploration of the Carbon Futures for the Bristol Region. This PhD is funded by the EPSRC and the Centre for Sustainable Energy, with the support of Bristol City Council, and will be supervised by AQMRC's Professor Jim Longhurst and Dr Enda Hayes, and Professor Vala Ragnarsdottir, from the University of Bristol.

Enda speaks at UWE seminar series

Enda gave a presentation at the UWE breakfast seminar series on air quality and transport planning. The seminar was well attended by air quality, planning, transport, and environmental experts from across the university, and gave rise to interesting debate on planning and effective air quality management.

PhD researcher Dotun Olowoporoku visits Cornwall Air Quality Forum

Following the successful presentation at the 10th AQMRC and Environment Protection UK Annual Conference held in Bristol on 21 February, 2008. Dotun was invited as a guest speaker at Partnership Board of the Cornwall Air Quality Forum (CAQF) held on 27 March. The meeting is comprised of the five Cornish district councils, Cornwall County Council and Cornwall College. At the meeting, he gave a talk on ‘Delivering Air Quality Objectives through the Local Transport Plan’. It provided the opportunity to present the key findings from the first round of questionnaires to a broad range of stakeholders who are responsible for steering the air quality management agenda at the local level. Dotun's research presentations are available here.

Tim on expert panel at Great Environment Briefing

Well over 450 people attended the The Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Great Environment Briefing at Reading Town Hall on Wednesday 9 April – with another 100+ watching via live webcast.
The expert panel included Tim Chatterton from AQMRC along with Dist. Professor Roland Clift of Surrey University, Professor Peter Matthews (talking on Water Quality), Professor John Twiddell (on Energy) and Jeff Cooper (on Waste). The event was chaired by Professor Sir Brian Hoskins, CBE., FRS
Following 15 minute presentations from the panel members, the briefing then held a wide ranging question and answer session (with question from the floor and via the internet from the webcast). Issues covered included diversion of agricultural resources to meat and biofuel production, encouragement of renewable energy, how to change people’s behaviour, purchasing art versus other carbon offsetting schemes, localisation of economic and cultural activities, problems with Fractional Reserve Banking systems, how deaths from air pollution are calculated and population control strategies. So a wide range of issues was covered – of interest both to engineers and non-engineers.

South African visitors take home air quality messages from UK study tour

The South African delegation were in the UK during the week beginning the 31st March - 4th April during which time they visited the University of the West of England, Bristol, AEA Energy & Environment at Harwell, the Environment Agency in Reading, Defra offices in London, the Greater London Authority and the two day Environmental Protection UK Spring Workshop in Northampton. Our visiting delegation thoroughly enjoyed their visit to the UK and returned to South Africa with an abundance of ideas and messages for their national and local governments, academics, NGO's and air quality practitioners. AQMRC and our South African visitors would like to thank the various individuals and organisations who opened their doors to our visitors and gave their time so generously to make it a most engaging and informative tour.

Air Quality Roadshow at UWE

Enviro Technology visited the UWE, Bristol Frenchay Campus on Monday 7 April with air quality monitoring equipment to explain and demonstrate to interested local authorities, researchers, and environmental consultants. AQMRC were pleased to host the event at which a number of delegates braved the weather and observed the equipment monitoring air quality and vehicle emissions in various locations around the campus. For more details about the event, please click here.

AQMRC awarded Higher Skills Development Fund

AQMRC has been awarded a Higher Skills Development Fund for the Development of Training Materials on Air Quality and Carbon Management for Air Quality Professionals in the South West Region. The project is for a one year duration. We will be asking your views, as air quality professionals, throughout the development of the training materials.

South African delegation visit UWE on the first leg of their European Study Tour (31st March - 4th April 2008)

In 2007, AQMRC in partnership with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the Norwegian Institute for Air Research (NILU) successfully completed the National Air Quality Framework on behalf of the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism in South Africa. As part of this prestigious project, AQMRC were tasked with organising a knowledge exchange study tour to the UK for a South African delegation to learn more about the UK air quality management systems, science and issues. The South African delegation is lead Prof Roseanne Diab (University of KwaZulu-Natal) accompanied by her husband Richard, Jean-Pierre Mfuamba (National Framework Intern), Yegeshni Naiker (National Framework Intern), Caradee Wright (CSIR Postdoc) and Tirusha Thambiran (University of KwaZulu-Natal PhD student). This knowledge exchange study tour will include visits to UWE, AEAT, the Environment Agency, Defra, the GLA and finally two days at the Environmental Protection UK Annual Spring Workshop. Dr Enda Hayes, AQMRC organised the study tour and will accompany the delegation while they are in the UK. AQMRC are delighted to be involved in such a high profile project and look forward to welcoming our South African colleagues for an engaging and informative visit.

Tim takes key role at the UKPHA annual public health forum

Tim will be attending the UKPHA annual public health forum in Liverpool on the 1st and 2nd of April. He will be having a busy week. He will be presenting an paper based on the work that the group carried out for DfT last year on public attitudes towards the environment in making transport choices, and a poster on public consultation based on the ESRC Science in Society "10 Steps to Better Engagement" project. In his role as co-chair of the UKPHA's Special Interest Group on Health and Sustainable Environments, Tim will also be chairing a session on Planning for Health, and is co-ordinating the SIGs concurrent debate on "Valuing Health and Environment in Decision Making: Can We Afford Not To?". This feature a number of high profile speakers, including Neil McInroy from the Centre for Local Economic Strategies, Paul Tomlinson from the Royal Town Planning Institute, and members of the GLAs teams on planning and health.