Consultation on the revocation of Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) Number 1 - Kidsgrove
An Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) was declared in the Kidsgrove area on the 15th January 2015 due to exceedances of the air quality objective for annual mean nitrogen dioxide (NO2). This AQMA was declared to comply with the requirements placed upon the Council by virtue of Part IV of the Environment Act 1995. The location of this AQMA can be found online on the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) website - AQMA Details - DEFRA UK Air - GOV.UK.
Air Quality in this location was heavily influenced by traffic using the A50 (Liverpool Road) through the town and the cause of the exceedance of the Air Quality Objective was attributed to exhaust emissions from slow moving, and queuing traffic, at peak times - particularly at the traffic lights at the junctions with Heathcote Street and Gloucester Road.
The Air Quality Action Plans developed for this AQMA assessed the impact of emissions from road traffic and identified improvements that could be applied to bring about compliance with the air quality objective.
The NO2 concentrations at this location fell dramatically in 2019 and have been greater than 10% below the UK NO2 annual mean objective for the past five calendar years.
As the air quality objective has been complied with for more than 3 consecutive years, in accordance with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) guidance it is now recommended that this AQMA is revoked.
Details of the air quality monitoring carried out within the AQMA are available within the annual status reports published upon our website: Air quality management – Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council
Read more about the consultation
Have your say on our intention to revoke the Maybank, Wolstanton, Porthill AQMA by sending any comments to Environmental Health at Environmental_Health@newcastle-staffs.gov.uk. Please provide your name, telephone number, email address, and postcode with your comments.
What is the next step?
We will begin a 4 week Statutory Consultation from 9 July 2025 until 6 August 2025. Responses to the consultation will be considered and the matter will be put to the Licensing and Public Protection Committee for approval on 19 August 2025.
We will then seek DEFRA`s comment upon the final plan and a Revocation Order will be issued and made available on our website.