Charity calls for more LEZs EUR0-6 STANDARD low emission zones
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(LEZ) should be launched in the UK's largest towns and cities, according to an environmental charity that took the government to court over air quality breaches. ClientEarth said the government had washed its hands of LEZs after giving local authorities money to investigate their potential.
Last month, the Supreme Court ruled that the government was failing in its legal duty to protect people from pollution and it had breached the EU Air Quality Directive.
The ruling puts pressure on the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to develop plans to reduce nitrogen dioxide (N0x) and particulate matter emissions from vehicles.
ClientEarth said LGVs, buses and vans all needed to be targeted by tough LEZ stand ards and that, eventually, cars must come within their scope.
Alan Andrew, a lawyer at ClientEarth, said: "Euro-4 and Euro-5 have done nothing to improve emissions and NOx. Euro-6 has to be the standard. It needs to be driven by central government. It needs logistical support, a national framework and to be coherent and consistent."
A Defra spokeswoman said: "Air quality has improved significantly in recent decades and almost all of the UK meets EU air quality limits for all pollutants."