The proximity of Stanwell Moor Village to Heathrow Airport leads to serious questions about the quality of the air in the village, with the village being under the Southern runway Western approach. Residents want simple clear information that tells them if there is an air quality problem and, if so, what that means.
Sadly, the airport has not placed a monitoring station in the village. So it is difficult to understand how the airport can reliably measure the impact of air pollution in our village. Thankfully, Spelthorne Borough Council has taken the initiative to enable residents be informed of a “pollution episode.” This is no way excuses the airport for its responsibility, nor replace what it should do.
Spelthorne Borough Council’s service sends air pollution alerts and health advice to residents and visitors most likely to be affected by air pollution.
airTEXT, which has been developed in collaboration with six Surrey local authorities and Cambridge Environmental Research Consultants (CERC), aims to give advance warning when air pollution is expected to be higher than usual, up to 3 days ahead. It includes information about overall air quality, pollen count, UV levels and air temperature.
Residents can sign up to receive the alerts by text, email or voicemail. Alerts for different areas can be selected depending on where users live or work.
Air pollution levels often rise on hot sunny days in summer, and on cold still days in winter. Once these levels increase, they often remain high for two or three days, which is known as a pollution episode. Pollution episodes in Spelthorne are uncommon, but when they do occur, they can have a serious impact on people who suffer from respiratory or cardiovascular conditions like asthma, emphysema, bronchitis or heart disease.