100 signatures reached
To: Pembrokeshire County Council
Milford Haven and Surrounding Areas Urgently Need Continuous Air Pollution Monitoring
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"We call on Pembrokeshire Council to immediately introduce air quality monitoring in and around Milford Haven. We believe that there needs to be continuous monitoring of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), small particulates (PM10), as well as of benzene and 1,3-butadiene."
We call for this in response to the fact that Milford Haven hosts the largest port in Wales and is dominated by potential polluters such as Valero a large oil refinery as well as the new Pembroke Power Station, with the additional possibilty of pollution from the close by South Hook LNG and Dragon LNG . Although a continuous air quality monitor for NO2 has been installed near the Pembroke Power Station, this is not in the prevailing wind direction from Valero’s Pembroke Refinery and does not give any indication of pollution levels in Milford Haven.
Without such monitoring, there is no way of ensuring that legal air quality limits are being met, limits which exist to protect public health. Furthermore, a 50-350 MWe biomass and waste gasification plant is proposed in Milford Haven, and the lack of background air quality data will make an informed decision about the compatibility of that plant with UK Air Quality Objectives and EU Air Quality Standards impossible.
Why is this important?
Milford Haven and adjacent towns to the growing industrial petrochemical and power industries are not monitored independently by Pembrokeshire County Council.
We need constant air pollution monitoring, due to the possibility of daily pollution from the nearby industrial complexes. which could be a direct threat to our health and well being, especially the young and old.
Any possible pollution is supposed to be carried away by the use of tall chimneys/stacks, but on days of still weather conditions, any pollutants can fall within a one and a half mile footprint, which could potentially cause massive health issues such as Asthma, Cancer and many other life threatening conditions to inhabitants living in Pembrokeshire.
Air pollution monitoring would be the first step in helping us in detecting and taking any necessary preventative measures against these health threats.
Please sign our petition, thank you. Peter Warrender, Pembrokeshire Friends of the Earth.
