Happy Clean Air Day 2023! You may be aware that London has had an episode of high air pollution this week, which makes today even more important even if it might be more appropriate to call today ‘not clean air day’ or ‘not yet clean air day’. I’m writing to you now to remind you of a couple of things you can do easily to take care and take action.
First and foremost, our Bromley Clean Air Day webinar will take place on zoom today, at 7pm on 15 June. The purpose of the webinar is to raise awareness of issues relating to air quality in London Borough of Bromley as well as discuss options for addressing these issues. The webinar will bring together a wide range of Bromley residents and local organisations. To join the meeting, please click this link: https://us05web.zoom.us/j/83314849576?pwd=TjhwMzNKdW1yYjRRcGxwVmxqak1lZz09
Or, alternatively, download Zoom and type in the following meeting details:
Meeting ID: 833 1484 9576
Passcode: 6Kptkf
We would like participants to leave the webinar with a better understanding of how Bromley Council monitors and takes action on air quality as well as ways in which you, as individuals, can protect yourselves from air pollution and take action to reduce your contributions to air pollution. Here are three things you can do right now:
Choose a clean air route. If you’re walking or cycling somewhere, use the Mayor of London’s Clean Air Route Finder tool to compare pollution levels on different routes.
Get a discussion going locally. Air pollution is invisible, so getting an air quality monitor set up is a great way to get people talking about the issue, which is the first step to getting something done about it. If you have children at a school, tell a teacher or the PTA that Asthma and Lung UK are offering free air quality monitors and put them in touch with us (we have already set up monitors at 5 Bromley schools). You can also apply for a ‘high tech’ Breathe London monitor: deadline is 30 June. If you’re applying get in touch: we were successful in applying for one in the last round of applications and can advise on your application.
Email your Councillor and ask them to take action. Not sure how to ask or what to ask? Global Action Plan’s Clean Air Hub have a template you can use. You might want to do a bit of research first on air pollution levels in your area. If you want to find air quality data in your street or neighbourhood, the Annual Pollution maps produced by London Air are a brilliant tool.
We are Bromley Living Streets, a local group of Bromley residents campaigning for safer, quieter streets suitable for the needs of all residents and modes of transport. We are affiliated to Living Streets, the national charity for everyday walking. We believe clean air is an important consideration for an organisation focused on the ways transport choices made by individuals have consequences for others locally.
You can read more about Clean Air Day here: https://www.globalactionplan.org.uk/news/clean-air-day-theme-confirmed-for-15-june-2023
