Former Farnham Waverley borough Councillor Brian Edmonds may not be in, but he’s certainly not out.

Here he has his say on yesterday’s post:   Does Surrey County Council leader speak with forked tongue?

Surrey CC local transport plan (LTP4)

“Air quality is key to the health of humans and ecosystems. The Environment Act (1995) requires borough and district councils to identify Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) where current or future air quality is unlikely to meet national air quality objectives and to develop Air Quality Action Plans to tackle poor air quality in these areas.”

Surrey Policy Statement

“Achieving a smooth flow of traffic brings benefits to road users through better journey time reliability and a more pleasant driving experience. Reducing congestion also helps businesses, improves road safety and reduces emissions of carbon and local pollutants.”

Both district and county councils have statutory responsibilities for Farnham’s air quality and are required to cooperate in reviewing and deciding management measures.

So why does Farnham still have an Air Quality Management Area?

Choosing to approve major developments without an Environmental Impact Assessment doesn’t help. This removes the developer’s legal obligation to describe the significant effects of their development on the Farnham environment during construction and completion and to confirm that their use of natural resources and infrastructure is sustainable.