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Poor air quality is an important public health issue especially in cities where traffic is the major source of pollution. It is estimated that 29,000 people die prematurely in the UK each year, and 310,000 in Europe, because of air pollution. King's research, based on the London Air Quality Network (LAQN), including emissions modelling and vehicle profiling, indicated that improvements in air quality could be achieved by restricting the entrance of specific vehicle classes into urban areas. These research outputs were utilised by the Mayor of London to introduce the Congestion Charging Scheme (CCS), from 2003 to the present, and the London Low Emission Zone (LEZ), from 2008 to the present. This research, together with King's ongoing evaluation of air quality and the impact of traffic control schemes in London, has created increasing international interest in this method of pollution control resulting in the adoption of similar interventions across Europe.
A sustained programme of epidemiological research at St George's, spanning 20 years, has informed air pollution control policies in the UK and internationally. Time-series studies of the acute health effects of daily fluctuations in air pollutants, initially in London, were extended to Europe-wide collaborations, trans-Atlantic comparisons and studies in Asian cities. Publication bias has been explored systematically in meta-analyses of published time-series results, and the adverse effects of different particulate fractions compared in a UK setting. This evidence base has contributed substantially to the current UK Air Quality Strategy and informs ongoing debates about health impacts of shorter-lived "greenhouse" pollutants.
University of Leicester research has developed, with funding from the European Regional Development Fund, a business support offer, Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) Space Technology Exchange Partnership (G-STEP) — which has led to a number of impacts:
Economic impacts via direct support of 40 East Midlands companies, including the creation of 3 new businesses, with a £950K GVA (Gross Value Added) to the companies and £2.9M in investment in the East Midlands. It has led to the employment of 20 Leicester graduates. Policy impacts via the Local Economic Partnership which has identified space as one of three emerging sectors for focussed development. Nationally, the emerging Satellite Applications Catapult has reviewed the G-Step delivery model to inform its own operation. Internationally, G-STEP led the NEREUS (Network of Regions in Europe Using Space) Earth Observation/GMES working group and produced the "The Growing Use of Space Across Europe", launched at the European Parliament in 2012.
Environmental benefits via the development of products which are having a positive impact on the environment including satellite enabled traffic management tools and high value crop management.
Bristol ChemLabS (part of the School of Chemistry) has used School of Chemistry research on the atmosphere (air quality, atmospheric chemistry and the history of greenhouse gases on Earth) to enhance dramatically the quality and uptake of chemistry education in the UK and approximately 20 other nations. This radical advance has been achieved through ChemLabS' outreach activity, which has involved running more than 1,200 events for over 250,000 students over the past six years (and over 1,000 events since 2008). ChemLabS' atmospheric chemistry education packages are now being delivered in other countries, its textbooks/articles have been taken up across Europe, and it has trained more than 500 teachers directly. As a result of its activities, which are grounded in rigorous research, Bristol ChemLabS has been able to document increased interest in science and higher uptake at post-16 level.
Working closely with scientists at the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the University of Southampton has developed new methods for space-time modelling that have trebled the accuracy of air pollution forecasts. The USEPA has adopted the research as its official forecasting method to protect the American public and agriculture. More than 19 million children and 16 million adult Americans suffering from respiratory conditions such as asthma now benefit by being able to adjust their outdoor activities based on the forecasts, and improved data has fed into policy debates on carbon emission regulations. Success in the USA has led the EPSRC to fund a similar project in the UK and Australia's national science agency is using Southampton-developed software for its air pollution forecasts.
Evidence from research at UWE Bristol has enabled UK local and national governments and international governments (South Africa, Nigeria) to enhance their processes and procedures for managing air quality. UWE researchers have contributed to the policy and technical guidance issued by UK Governments, and they have directly advised the UK Government and devolved national and London administrations on legislation, regulation and official guidance. The research has contributed to the widespread recognition of the spatial extent of air quality problems, ensuring continued support of air quality management at a local level. The research activity and experience gained has been shared through international agencies, learned societies and interest groups. This extends to the EU, China, Brazil, and India, and specifically the Republic of South Africa through the development of the National Framework for Air Quality Management and in Nigeria through collaboration with the National Space Research and Development Agency.
The 2010 Eyjafjallajökull and 2011 Grímsvötn eruptions in Iceland were stark reminders that global society is increasingly vulnerable to volcanic hazards. Research at the University of Leeds has shown that volcanic gases and airborne particles could be a significant health hazard to humans — potentially more fatal than seasonal `flu. Leeds scientists used computer models to demonstrate that a long-lasting, gas-rich eruption in Iceland could degrade air quality and lead to well over 100,000 deaths across Europe. In January 2012, the number of potential fatalities was used as evidence by the UK government for the decision to add large-magnitude effusive Icelandic eruptions to the UK National Risk Register of Civil Emergencies as a high priority risk with potentially widespread effects on health, agriculture and transport. Leeds researchers continue to advise the UK government on the mitigation of potential volcanic hazards through the Civil Contingencies Secretariat.
The University of Liverpool (UoL) team at the WHO Collaborating Centre for Policy Research on Social Determinants of Health (Liverpool WHO CC) has made a leading, internationally recognised contribution to addressing the adverse health consequences of household air pollution, a problem responsible for an estimated 4 million premature deaths among 2.8 billion of the world's poorest people. Impacts include (i) generating global awareness of a hitherto poorly recognised problem through defining the disease burden, (ii) leading development of new WHO Guidelines on the issue, (iii) providing key evidence for intervention and policy studies in low-income countries and (iv) helping to formulate strategy for global initiatives to address the problem.
Air pollution is a major health concern and government policy driver. Leeds researchers and colleagues have developed a detailed chemical mechanism which describes reactions in the lower atmosphere leading to the formation of ozone and secondary particulate matter, key air pollutants. The so-called `master chemical mechanism' (MCM) is considered the `gold standard' and has been used by the UK government and industry groups to inform their position on EU legislation and by the US EPA to validate and extend their regulatory models. The Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department has used the MCM to identify key ozone precursors and provide evidence for abatement strategies.
Research performed at York during 2003-6 revealed the unexpectedly high level of organic emissions by trees in the UK during the hottest periods, catalysing the formation of smog. This research on causes of summertime air pollution informed UK government policy reports in 2008/9. It also resulted in on-going changes in modelling of biogenic emissions by DEFRA (Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs), embedding the knowledge into all future government policy evaluations of air pollution. The Met Office and others have now improved their air quality forecasts provided to the public by adding the effect of natural emissions. The beneficiaries of the York research include government and those people at health risk from low air quality. The impact spans public policy, environmental policy and health.