UKPIA statistical review 2022

Average Average Days of Air Pollution Exceeding “Low”, Urban Areas PM 10 PM 2.5 NO 2 SO 2 O 3 Average Days of Air Polution Exceeding “Low”, Urban Areas PM10 PM2.5 NO2 SO2

Average Days of Air Polution Exceeding “Low”, Rural Areas Average Days of Air Pollution Exceeding “Low”, Rural Areas PM 10 PM 2.5 NO 2 SO 2 O 3 Average PM10 PM2.5 NO2 SO2

Days

O3

Days

O3

30

10 12 14 16 18 20

25

20

15

0 2 4 6 8

10

5

0

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Source: DEFRA

Source: DEFRA

Continued reduced activity in 2021 as a result of reimposed coronavirus restrictions, have meant that the number of days on which pollution concentration of any type decreased year-on-year in both urban and rural area classes. Indeed, there were no days in 2021 on which NO 2 or SO 2 pollution was measured to exceed “low” concentrations in either urban or rural areas. With weather closer to “average” in 2021 – meaning cooler and cloudier than in 2020 (“Met Office: A Review of the UK’s Climate in 2021” 2022) – O 3 pollution decreased by 68% and 48% in urban and rural areas, year-on-year. “Low” is defined by the Daily Air Quality Index, which categorises air pollution (ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and PM 2.5 and PM 10 particles) into four bands: low, moderate, high, and very high. The concentration of only one of these four must exceed “low” for a day to be captured above.

29 | Statistical Review | 2022

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