Our air

Air pollution in Richmond comes from a variety of sources. Tackling air pollution and improving air quality across the borough is a high priority, and our Air Quality Action Plan sets out the steps we will take to create a borough that is healthy, vibrant, and fit for the future.

Find out how we will improve air quality in the borough:

• Our objectives
• Air pollution in our borough
• Air Quality Action Plan

Our objectives

We will develop and deliver an ambitious air quality plan that will make a meaningful change to air quality in the borough with an emphasis on reducing air pollution particularly around schools and town centres.

By 2024, we aim to have less polluting traffic on our roads, contributing to an improvement in air quality across the borough.

Our key target is to improve the air quality in the borough.

Air pollution in our borough

Air quality and climate change are closely interrelated with many common air pollutants being climate active. A warming climate also threatens to make air quality worse with the prevalence of harmful photochemical smog likely to increase throughout longer and hotter summers.

Air pollution in Richmond comes from a variety of sources. This includes pollution from sources outside of the borough, and, in the case of particulate matter, a significant proportion comes from outside of London and even the UK. For these sources the Council has limited control. However, local sources are primarily from road transport and from development and buildings, which Richmond may be able to influence.

Sources of air pollution in Richmond include buildings, construction, road transport and wood burning.

Air Quality Action Plan

The Air Quality Action Plan (pdf, 4.1 MB), was approved in March 2020. It highlights the key actions the Council will deliver to improve air quality in the borough.

Specific highlights within the Air Quality Action Plan and the Climate Emergency Strategy include:

• A robust borough-wide monitoring programme to measure and assess air quality and a series of awareness-raising programmes at schools in hotspot areas
• Enhanced tree planting programme
• Supporting schools to have school travel plans through the TfL Sustainable Travel STARS programme
• A team of Council instructors to offer bikeability training through schools
• No Idling campaign
• Improvements on cycling infrastructure across the borough
• New Cycling Strategy and Active Travel Plan
• Electric Vehicle and Recharging Strategy
• A new Clean Air Zone for Richmond Town Centre
• A new Air Quality Supplementary Planning Document
• We will consult on the introduction of a diesel surcharge on CPZ parking permits
• We will continue to oppose the expansion of Heathrow Airport