'Council's air quality proposals at Four Elms Hill lack substance' - say Medway Liberal Democrats

Responding to the news of the Council's plans for air quality improvement on the Hoo Peninsula & its consultation for Four Elms Hill, Medway's Liberal Democrats believe that the plans do not go far enough to tackle air pollution. The Council has an obligation to manage air quality, by minimising carbon emissions & where necessary extending coverage of monitoring to include more potential pollution hotspots. The Council should have developed an understanding of air quality some time ago, & upgraded its air quality monitoring network to reflect the projected growth on the Peninsula.

Alan Wells, Liberal Democrat candidate for Strood Rural said "The measures do not go far enough & lack substance especially in light of any future developments at Hoo & Frindsbury. We have consistently called on the Council to adopt policies which are in line with our local environment, and that will improve the air quality and health of residents around Four Elms Hill.

The Council has clearly been dragging its heels. We stated in February 2021 that the Hoo Infrastructure Fund (HIF) lacked detail on plans for cycling and walking routes around the Peninsula. We felt then & now that a holistic approach should be taken, to ensure infrastructure for walking & cycling routes, & this should have been considered from the earliest stages of plan making, so that it was integrated into the design of the development & form part of a Medway cycling network. We also raised significant concerns, that air quality issues on Four Elms Hill were not being addressed."

We believe that there are measures Medway Council could still take now, to improve our town's air quality, with initiatives to discourage diesel car use, encourage people out of vehicles for their daily commute, while providing those who cannot walk or cycle with alternative clean modes of transport. Giving people a viable & convenient alternative to the private car will help ease congestion & improve air quality across the Hoo peninsula and throughout Medway.

We have previously stressed that Medway's bus fleet must be adapted to hydrogen fuel cell, so as to reduce harmful air particulates. The Council could ensure that the Peninsula's rural communities have access to good-quality, reliable public transport and provide incentives for its use with cheaper fares, a greater frequency of services, more twilight bus services, quicker journey times as well as promoting eco-driving & car sharing. We believe the Council could introduce low traffic and traffic-free neighbourhoods in consultation with residents & local businesses.

We cannot continue to ignore the reality that Medway is no longer free from dirty air. We feel that air pollution must be tackled now, not only to save our environment but to save lives. A report produced by the Centre for Cities found that 1 in 16 deaths in Chatham "are exclusively driven by combustion in commercial, institutional, and domestic activities linked to long-term exposure to particulates."

Nationally, Liberal Democrats are calling for World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines on particulate matter to be adopted into UK law & met by 2030. Medway should lead the way in tackling air pollution, & findings such as contained in the 'Centre for Cities' report need to be addressed as rapidly as possible to remedy the situation. This highlights why a local development plan that would invest in our local health, & in infrastructure is crucial to improving air quality around our towns.

ENDS