Air Quality Assessment – Clarence Road, Bristol

Redmore Environmental was instructed to undertake an Air Quality Assessment in support the redevelopment of the former Peugeot Garage and Victoria House, located off Clarence Road, Bristol. The proposals comprised the demolition of the existing buildings and redevelopment of the site to provide:

• 437 build-to-rent apartments.
• Flexible commercial, business and services floorspace.
• Public realm improvements.

The site is located within the Bristol Temple Quarter. This is located in central Bristol and is in the process of transformation as one of the UK’s largest regeneration projects.

Air Quality Assessment – Bristol

The site is located within an Air Quality Management Area. This has been declared by Bristol City Council due to high pollution levels. An Air Quality Assessment was therefore undertaken to determine whether the proposals would expose future residents to poor air quality, as well as cause air quality impacts during the construction and operational phases.

Assessment Methodology and Findings

Large developments can cause adverse impacts through release of fugitive dust emissions during construction works. As such, a construction dust risk assessment was completed. The impacts associated with demolition, earthworks, construction and trackout activities were considered in accordance with the relevant Institute of Air Quality Management (IAQM) guidance. Based on the outcome of the risk assessment, site-specific dust control measures were provided to reduce dust emissions to an acceptable level during construction.

The proposal had the potential to expose future occupants to poor air quality. Dispersion modelling was therefore undertaken using ADMS-Roads in order to predict concentrations throughout the development as a result of emissions from the local highway network. Results were subsequently verified using local monitoring data. These indicated that predicted concentrations of all pollutants were below the relevant UK Air Quality Objectives. Based on the assessment results, the site was considered to be suitable for the proposed end-use from an air quality perspective.

Impacts can also be caused by traffic exhaust emissions associated with vehicles travelling to and from a proposed development. These were therefore assessed using guidance from the IAQM ‘Land-Use Planning & Development Control: Planning for Air Quality’. This indicated that due to the anticipated decrease in daily trips between the existing site and the proposed development, the criteria for further assessment were not met. As such, the impacts could be described as negligible, providing a cost effective solution for the client and limiting the amount of detailed assessment required for the project.

How Can We Help?

If you are concerned about air quality issues associated with your development, or have a requirement for an Air Quality Assessment, do not hesitate to get in touch today to see how we can help.