Air quality explained

When harmful gases, dust and smoke get into the air it’s called “air pollution”. When we breathe in harmful gases and particles, they can make existing conditions like asthma worse and increase our chances of becoming unwell in the future.

It is good to remember that most of the gases in the air either help us, like oxygen, or have no effect on us. However, some things that humans do, like burning coal and driving cars, release gases and particles which are bad for us, such as Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Particulate Matter (PM2.5 and PM10). And it is those that we call “air pollution”.

Air pollution is the largest environmental threat to public health in the UK. Exposure to air pollution is estimated to cause 36,000 premature deaths each year.
In 2019, 4,100 deaths in London were caused by air pollution and 149 of these were in Brent. PM2.5 and NO2 collectively are responsible for over 8% of all deaths in the borough.

Air pollution causes adverse health impacts; it can cause asthma, heart disease, cancer, and is also linked to dementia. Even if you have no underlying health issues, air pollution can still impact your future health.

Some people are more susceptible to air pollution than others; this includes:

• People with existing health conditions, such as asthma and heart disease
• Children
• Elderly
• Pregnant women
• Communities in areas of higher pollution, such as close to busy roads

Find more information on:

• How air pollution can affect your health
• How you can protect yourself if you have a respiratory condition

Although progress has been made in reducing air pollution concentrations across the borough for the key pollutants (NO2, PM10, and PM2.5), some areas in the borough are still exceeding the legal limits for NO2 set by UK government and the majority of the borough exceeds the PM2.5 limit. Moreover, pollution levels across the whole borough are higher than the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines.

Within Brent, there are over 18,000 people who suffer with asthma, almost 2,500 of whom are children. It is therefore critical that we all play a role in tackling air pollution in the borough, for our own health and for the health of others.

Find out more through Brent’s Joint Strategic Needs Assessment

Pollution in Brent comes from a variety of sources. This includes pollution from outside the borough (known as transboundary pollution). In the case of particulate matter, a significant proportion of this comes from outside of London and even the UK.

Of the pollution that originates within the borough, the main sources are as follows:

• For NO2, road transport (48%). Levels are therefore highest along roads
• For PM2.5, road transport (30%) and domestic biomass/wood burning (17%)
• For PM10, construction (37%) and road transport (25%).

Find out about how we are tackling air pollution.