Air quality statistics in the UK

On 28 April 2022, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) published an annual update on concentrations of major air pollutants in the UK. This publication summarises the concentrations of major air pollutants as measured by the Automatic Urban and Rural Network (AURN). This release covers annual average concentrations in the UK of:

• nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
• particulates (PM2.5)
• particulates (PM10)
• ozone (O3) 

The publication also covers the number of days when air pollution was moderate or higher for any one of the following five pollutants:

• nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
• particulates (PM2.5)
• particulates (PM10)
• ozone (O3)
• sulphur dioxide (SO2) 

These statistics are used to monitor progress against the UK’s reduction targets for concentrations of air pollutants. Improvements in air quality help reduce harm to human health and the environment. 

Air quality in the UK is strongly linked to anthropogenic emissions of pollutants. More information on UK emissions data and other information can be found on the UK Government website. 

The statistics in this publication are based on data from the Automatic Urban and Rural Network (AURN) of air quality monitors. The UK-AIR website contains the latest air quality monitoring data for the UK and detailed information about the different monitoring networks that measure air quality. The website also hosts the latest data produced using Pollution Climate Mapping (PCM), which is a suite of models that uses both monitoring and emissions data to model concentrations of air pollutants across the whole of the UK. The UK-AIR website also provides air pollution episode updates and information on Local Authority Air Quality Management Areas as well as a number of useful reports. 

The monitoring data is continuously reviewed and subject to change when issues are highlighted, meaning that the time series for certain statistics may vary slightly from year to year. 

Source: DEFRA, 28 April 2022