Government names research priorities to tackle air pollution

The UK government has identified areas for further research on air pollution as part of its long-awaited Clean Air Strategy 2019.

The strategy, launched on 14 January, aims to cut the costs to society of air pollution by £1.7 billion every year by 2020, rising to £5.3bn every year from 2030.

In the strategy, the government names five priority areas for R&D. These are: particulate matter emissions from industrial combustion, tyre, brake and road wear, industrial processes and domestic burning; zero or ultra-low emission heavy goods vehicles; volatile organic compounds from industrial processes and product formulation; low and zero-emission options for non-road mobile machinery; and ammonia emissions from agriculture.