Environmental Protection UK (EPUK) and the Institute of Air Quality Management (IAQM) have produced this guidance to ensure that air quality is adequately considered in the land-use planning and development control processes.

The spatial planning system has an important role to play in improving air quality and reducing exposure to air pollution. Both the development of local planning policies and the determination of individual planning applications are important, the former setting the framework for the latter. This guidance focuses on development control, but also stresses the importance of having good air quality policies within local authority planning frameworks.

The intended audience for this guidance is air quality and planning officers within local authorities, and developers and consultants involved in the preparation of development proposals and planning applications. This document has been developed for professionals operating within the planning system. It provides them with a means of reaching sound decisions, having regard to the air quality implications of development proposals. It also is anticipated that developers will be better able to understand what will make a proposal more likely to succeed.

This guidance was produced as a result of the voluntary contribution of individuals within the Working Group, who are members of EPUK and/or IAQM, for which both organisations are grateful. Whilst this guidance represents a consensus view of the Working Group, it does not necessarily represent the views of individual members.

Republished: January 2017, v1.2