The most dangerously polluted streets in Scotland have been revealed by official monitoring.
14 streets in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Falkirk, Perth, Crieff and Cambuslang were a public danger thanks to particles and gases polluting the air in 2016.
“Our addiction to cars is killing us,” Emilia Hanna from Friends of the Earth Scotland told the Herald. “But it’s those who tend not to drive who are worst impacted by the pollution: children, the elderly, and those living in poverty.”
Friends of the Earth Scotland found that the most polluted place in Scotland is Hope Street in Glasgow.
Average levels of the nitrogen dioxide in 2016 were found to be 65 micrograms per cubic metre, more than 60 per cent over the legal limit of 40.
The nitrogen dioxide limit was also exceeded on Dumbarton Road in Glasgow, and on St John’s Road and Queensferry Road in Edinburgh.
In Aberdeen the limit was breached on Wellington Road and Union Street, in Dundee on Seagate, in Cambuslang on Main Street and in Perth on Atholl Street.
“The Scottish Government has a duty to ensure that people in Scotland can breathe clean air,” said Alan Andrews, a lawyer with the environmental group, ClientEarth.
“If the Scottish Government fails to take action it will be failing in its legal duty to protect the people of Scotland and will leave itself wide open to legal challenges in the Scottish courts.”
Dr Sean Semple, an air pollution expert from the University of Aberdeen said: “Inhaling fine particles and gases such as nitrogen dioxide at the levels reported in these streets has been shown to be associated with increases in mortality and ill-health, and with poorer quality of life.
“To improve air quality we need to consider restrictions on car use, particularly for short journeys, and look at ways of rebalancing our approach to personal transportation in favour of public transport, walking and cycling.”
Scotland's most polluted streets
- Hope Street, Glasgow
- St John's Road, Edinburgh
- Wellington Road, Aberdeen
- Seagate, Dundee
- Main Street, Cambuslang
- Union Street, Aberdeen
- Queensferry Road, Edinburgh
- Dumbarton Road, Glasgow
- Atholl Street, Perth
- Salamander Street, Edinburgh
- King Street, Aberdeen
- High Street, Crieff
- West Bridge Street, Falkirk
- Glasgow Road, Edinburgh
Good sprint for sure. Anybody know who came down in the crash and who caused it?
Tony Blackburn? Isn't he dead yet? Why do third-rate celebs think their witterings are worth listening to?
Sounds to me like they're getting ripped off. People have thrown together Raspberry Pi hardware along with a camera (there's some excellent camera...
Would it be too simple to say the categories are based on sex, not on gender?
I had to go and look that up and can only agree with you. Quite a handsome Coat of Arms as well.
Think you've got hold of the wrong end of the stick there, testosterone is reduced by taking testosterone blockers, not by 'taking oestrogen'....
I concur GP4000 is the hardest I've ever had to mount on a rim, Ultegra wheelset in my case. Shifted the outer skin on my thumbs!...
Another one who deliberately misuses the term. Looking for trouble. Yeah because in London you have to stake out a road all day to find one offence.
Ticks a box, doesn't it?...
Normally I don't have a small enough violin for them but in this case I guess it's possible that their office / secretary / intern submitted this...