Air quality
Air quality in Dorset is generally good although there are certain 'hotspots' where standards fail to meet national air quality objectives. As part of their statutory duties, Dorset Council undertake a regular programme to monitor and review air quality in their areas. They are required to submit Annual Status Reports to the government. Historic reports (prior to 2020) can be found below for each area. The reports contain the resuts of any air quality monitoring carried out with information on what the council is doing to improve air quality in your area.
In 2020 the former local authority areas were amalgamated into one report. If you require a copy of the Dorset Air Quality Annual Status Report 2020 please send a request to our business support team at mailto:envhealthteamb@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk and a copy will be sent out to you.
Air Quality Management Areas
Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) have to be declared in areas where these Government standards are not being met. AQMAs have been declared in the following locations due to high levels of the pollutant nitrogen dioxide:
Further information
The Defra website provides daily air quality information for Dorset including the effects of air pollution.
Use of open fires and wood burning stoves
Domestic burning of solid fuels such as the use of wood burning stoves is on the increase with this method now being the single largest source of particulate matter emissions in the UK. Therefore whilst it is recognised that many households are using open fires and stoves to heat their homes, we want to encourage people to shift from burning the more polluting fuels such as house coal and wet wood towards the less polluting fuels such as low sulphur smokeless fuels and dry woods. See this practical guide for further information.