Response 4089722

Response to request for information

Reference

4089722

Response date

4 September 2026

Request

Community Air Alert is writing to request the following information relating to the air quality monitoring provision within your local authority area.

As this request concerns air quality monitoring, the information sought is environmental information, and we make this request under the environmental information access regime applying to your authority. To the extent that any element falls outside that definition, we make the request under the corresponding freedom of information legislation.

Current monitoring provision

1. Does the authority operate its own air quality monitoring stations or sensors, independent of Defra's national networks?
2. How many air quality monitoring stations or sensors are currently in operation across the authority's area?
3. What type of monitoring equipment is used (manufacturer, model, and parameters measured, for example PM2.5, PM10, NO2, or O3)
4. Where is each monitoring unit located (addresses or geographic coordinates)?
5. Who operates the monitoring system (an in-house team or an external provider)?
6. What system is used to present and publish the monitoring data (web platform, mobile application, or public information display)? Please provide the URL if the data is published online.

Ownership and contracts

7. Is the monitoring equipment owned by the authority? If so, please state:
   • the date of acquisition,
   • the cost of acquisition,
   • who services the equipment and under what agreement (provider name, type of contract, and contract term).

8. If the equipment is not owned by the authority, under what arrangement is it used (rental, lease, hire, loan, or other)? Please state:
   • the start date of the current agreement,
   • the end date of the agreement,
   • the name of the provider.

Costs

9. What was the total cost of purchasing and commissioning the current monitoring system?
10. What is the annual cost of running the system, including servicing, calibration, data transmission, and hosting of the presentation platform?
11. What budget has been allocated to air quality monitoring for the 2026/27 financial year?

Development plans

12. Are any modifications to, or expansion of, the current monitoring system planned? If so, please state:
    • what changes are planned (for example additional sensors, a change of technology, or expansion of the data platform),
    • the intended timescale,
    • the estimated budget.
13. If the authority does not currently operate an air quality monitoring system, does it plan to implement one? If so, please state the intended timescale and the budget envisaged.

External funding

14. Does the authority plan to apply for any grants or external funding related to air quality monitoring?
15. Which funding programmes are being considered or have already been identified (for example Defra's Air Quality Grant, or other national, devolved, or regional schemes)?
16. Has the authority previously drawn on external funding for this purpose? If so, from which sources and in what amounts?

Collaboration and data integration

17. Does the authority collaborate on air quality monitoring with any other organisations (for example universities, non-governmental organisations, Defra, or neighbouring authorities)?
18. Is the data from the authority's monitoring system integrated with any publicly accessible air quality platforms (for example UK-AIR)?
19. Does the authority use air quality monitoring data to inform operational decisions (for example issuing air quality alerts, managing traffic,
    or Local Air Quality Management action planning under Part IV of the Environment Act 1995)?
20. Does the authority use air quality monitoring data to inform or educate residents?

Air quality in planning and environmental permitting

21. When determining major development proposals (for example large construction, infrastructure, industrial, or minerals and waste schemes), does the authority require air quality or dust assessment, and does it attach conditions requiring air quality monitoring, dust management, or a Construction Environmental Management Plan during the works?
22. For industrial installations that the authority regulates through environmental permitting, does it set air emission limits or air quality
    monitoring requirements as permit conditions?
23. Where such conditions or permit requirements are imposed, is the operator required to carry out the monitoring, and is the resulting data
    reported to the authority or made publicly available?

Response

Current monitoring provision

Rushcliffe Borough Council has a network of diffusion tubes located across the Borough. The location maps for the diffusion tube network are contained in our Annual Status Reports available at Air Quality Reports

1. Does the authority operate its own air quality monitoring stations or sensors, independent of Defra's national networks?
   • Response = No, Rushcliffe Borough Council does not operate any air quality monitoring stations or sensors, independent of Defra's national networks.
2. How many air quality monitoring stations or sensors are currently in operation across the authority's area?
   • Response = None
3. What type of monitoring equipment is used (manufacturer, model, and parameters measured, for example PM2.5, PM10, NO2, or O3)
   • Response =  Not applicable
4. Where is each monitoring unit located (addresses or geographic coordinates)?
   • Response = Not applicable
5. Who operates the monitoring system (an in-house team or an external provider)?
   • Response = Not applicable
6. What system is used to present and publish the monitoring data (web platform, mobile application, or public information display)? Please provide the URL if the data is published online.
   • Response = Annual diffusion tube data is published in our Annual Status Reports available at Air Quality Reports and on Nottingham Air Quality Management

Ownership and contracts

7. Is the monitoring equipment owned by the authority?
   • Not applicable

8. If the equipment is not owned by the authority, under what arrangement is it used (rental, lease, hire, loan, or other)? 
   • Not applicable

Costs

9. What was the total cost of purchasing and commissioning the current monitoring system?
   • Response = Not applicable
10. What is the annual cost of running the system, including servicing, calibration, data transmission, and hosting of the presentation platform?
    • Response = Not applicable
11. What budget has been allocated to air quality monitoring for the 2026/27 financial year?
    • Response = No specific budget allocated for air quality monitoring for the 2026/27 financial year

Development plans

12. Are any modifications to, or expansion of, the current monitoring system planned? If so, please state:
    • what changes are planned (for example additional sensors, a change of technology, or expansion of the data platform),
    • the intended timescale,
    • the estimated budget.
      • Response = None
13. If the authority does not currently operate an air quality monitoring system, does it plan to implement one? If so, please state the intended timescale and the budget envisaged.
    • Response = Rushcliffe Borough Council does not plan to implement an air quality monitoring system

External funding

14. Does the authority plan to apply for any grants or external funding related to air quality monitoring? Response = No
15. Which funding programmes are being considered or have already been identified (for example Defra's Air Quality Grant, or other national, devolved, or regional schemes)? Response = Not applicable
16. Has the authority previously drawn on external funding for this purpose? If so, from which sources and in what amounts? Response = Our records indicate Rushcliffe Borough Council historically benefitted from a Defra Grant for air quality monitoring - approximately £10,000 in 2009/10. 

Collaboration and data integration

17. Does the authority collaborate on air quality monitoring with any other organisations (for example universities, non-governmental organisations, Defra, or neighbouring authorities)?
    • Response = Rushcliffe Borough Council collaborates with neighbouring Nottinghamshire local authorities, the County Council, Nottingham City Council, NHS partners, local universities and the East Midlands Combined County Authority amongst others on air quality matters as part of the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Air Quality Oversight Group.  
18. Is the data from the authority's monitoring system integrated with any publicly accessible air quality platforms (for example UK-AIR)?
    • Response =  Our annual diffusion tube data is on Nottingham Air Quality Management
19. Does the authority use air quality monitoring data to inform operational decisions (for example issuing air quality alerts, managing traffic, or Local Air Quality Management action planning under Part IV of the Environment Act 1995)?
    • Response = Where necessary Rushcliffe Borough Council uses air quality monitoring data to inform action planning under Part IV of the Environment Act 1995.
20. Does the authority use air quality monitoring data to inform or educate residents?
    • Response = Where appropriate and in response to queries raised by residents and / or others, RBC uses air quality monitoring data to inform and educate residents.

Air quality in planning and environmental permitting

21. When determining major development proposals (for example large construction, infrastructure, industrial, or minerals and waste schemes), does the authority require air quality or dust assessment, and does it attach conditions requiring air quality monitoring, dust management, or a Construction Environmental Management Plan during the works?
    • Response = Where appropriate, planning conditions requiring submission for approval of air quality assessments, dust assessments and/or Construction Environmental Management Plans are attached to planning permissions.
22. For industrial installations that the authority regulates through environmental permitting, does it set air emission limits or air quality
    monitoring requirements as permit conditions?
    • Response = Where appropriate Rushcliffe Borough Council sets air emission limits or air quality monitoring requirements as permit conditions in accordance with the relevant environmental permitting Process and/or Sector Guidance Notes.
23. Where such conditions or permit requirements are imposed, is the operator required to carry out the monitoring, and is the resulting data reported to the authority or made publicly available?
    • Response = The operator is required to carry out monitoring and report the resulting data to Rushcliffe Borough Council as specified in the permit conditions.