Clearing the air

The Welsh Government has launched a consultation on its proposed Clean Air Zone (CAZ) Framework for Wales.

A consultation document was published on Wednesday (25 April) and the Government is inviting responses by 19 June. After taking the responses into account, the Framework will be published by 31 July.

The document points out that: “Although this is a draft Welsh framework, responses are welcomed from all interested parties both within and outside Wales.”

There are currently no CAZs in Wales.

In her foreword, Hannah Blythyn, the Welsh Minister for the Environment, said: “Action is being taken across the UK to tackle poor air quality, and I have committed to taking forward a Clean Air Plan for Wales this year. As part of the Plan, the Clean Air Zone Framework for Wales reflects our strong commitment to reduce levels of harmful emissions and improve the health and well-being of communities in Wales.”

The environmental lobby group ClientEarth – which took legal action against both the Welsh Government and UK Government in 2017 over levels of N02 in the UK – has criticized the draft plans for their “lack of clarity”.

In a statement issued on Thursday (26 April), ClientEarth Clean Air Lawyer Katie Nield said: “We will be going through the draft plans in more depth but our initial observations suggest that they lack clarity and detail. They are plans for a plan, which just set out a timetable for assessing the possible things that the government and local authorities could do. This would fall short of what the Welsh Government had itself promised the court it would deliver.

“Any plan should set out the measures that the government will take to bring air pollution to within legal limits as soon as possible, as well as a rigorous impact assessment to show that compliance is likely rather than just possible.”

Click here to view the consultation document.

Click here to view the proposed Clean Air Zone Framework for Wales.