FOR some time now residents of Brimscombe and Thrupp have been concerned at the levels of air pollution along the A419.

Back in November I placed a monitor on the London Road for two weeks and results have now come back from the lab showing levels of nitrogen dioxide at 40.3µg/m3 - above the legal limit of 40µg/m3.

This is higher than parts of Bristol city centre.

Of course, most of the NO2 emissions are caused by the increased volume of traffic we now suffer from but as anyone living in Thrupp knows, there is also air pollution from local industry due to the use of solvents and other chemicals.

Environmental health officers say the situation is being monitored but this really isn’t enough.

We need urgent action to clean up our air and especially to cut the number of vehicles on the road.

Air pollution is not good news for anyone suffering from asthma or other respiratory problems.

It can even be responsible for cancers and heart disease.

As usual it is the most vulnerable in our society like children and the elderly who are most at risk.

If you share our concerns please visit the Thrupp Environmental Action Group page on Facebook.

We would like to hear from anyone who has health issues caused by air pollution in the Golden Valley.

James Milroy

Brimscombe