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The impact of poor air quality on health in Birmingham – Call for EvidenceBy Councillor John Cotton, Chair of the Health, Wellbeing and the Environment Scrutiny Committee at Birmingham City Council.The Health, Wellbeing and the Environment O&S Committee has just started a new inquiry the aim of which is to consider evidential links between poor air quality and poor health; the main controllable sources of emissions causing this problem and what can be done to improve air quality with a view to improving health outcomes in Birmingham.We have put together a number of questions, or “key lines of enquiry” which we will be discussing in our public meeting in January. These include:What evidence is there about air quality, emission sources, and level of air pollution in Birmingham or in specific pollution hotspots?How do these rates compare to other comparable major cities in the UK and Europe?What are the main types of air pollution that affect people’s health, where do they come from, what is that health impact, and who is like to suffer the effects?Are there any trends which can be identified in relation to air quality and public health in the city?For each air pollution related health problem, what is the likely nature and scale of impact on the City’s health care system, and what are the likely social and economic costs of this?Birmingham has been ordered by the Government to impose charges in ‘clean air zones’ to cut pollution. What types of vehicle, driving mode, local and fuel system most contribute to the health impacts of road traffic, and what would be the most effective ways of implementing and operating a ‘clean air zone’ so as to minimise these burdens?What are the potential barriers to clean air zones being implemented widely in the city?Are there other measures which can be taken such as, for example, the planting of urban trees to absorb airborne pollutants and improve air quality and are there any plans in relation to these?An inquiry is only as good as the evidence it receives. This is why we want people across the whole of our city to get involved. We would welcome a written statement of your views and experience on any of the above points, along with any other comments you might have. We will collect all the written submissions and use these as evidence to support our work.We hope that you will use this opportunity to get involved in what we believe will be an influential piece of work. If you would like any further information about this Scrutiny Inquiry or how to submit written evidence, please email or call Rose.Kiely@.uk (0121 303 1730) or Gail.Sadler@.uk (0121 303 1901).The Inquiry group asks that written submissions are in Microsoft Word format wherever possible and are no longer than four pages. Please include contact details of the person or organisation submitting the evidence.If sending the submission by email, this should be sent to Rose.Kiely@.uk. If you would prefer to send a hard copy through the post, it can be sent to The Scrutiny Office, Council House, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B1 1BB.The deadline for written submissions is the Friday 16th December 2016.Reporting the FindingsThe Inquiry is due to present its findings, based on the evidence received, to Members of the City Council at their 4th April 2017 meeting.There will be one all-day evidence gathering session as follows:17th January 2017 1000-1300 & 1400-1600 Following conclusion of the evidence gathering a report will be drafted. We will share a copy of the draft report/and or relevant sections if you provided us with evidence and we will ask you to check for accuracy if we have used specific information that you provided us with.The report will be presented to City Council by the Chairman Councillor John Cotton on 4th April 2017 where all Members of the City Council will discuss the report and agree recommendations for implementation.? Once the report and recommendations have been agreed it will be up to the Council’s Executive (those with the power to make decisions) to put these in place. The relevant Scrutiny Committee will undertake 6 monthly “tracking” or monitoring of progress made on the implementation of the recommendations until such time that all recommendations are concluded. Scrutiny Committees are held in public and you are welcome to attend should you wish to do so. The first of meeting monitoring the implementation of the recommendations included in this report is anticipated for October 2017.Please note Inquiry meetings are primarily for discussion by Members of the Committee only. It is at the discretion of the Chair should they wish to engage members of the public Live-streaming of meetingsAll Council meetings including full Council meetings and Scrutiny Committee meetings are filmed and available to watch on-line live or via the archive and you can access via this link note that as a member of the public if you do not wish to be filmed please inform a Scrutiny officer at the meeting so this can be facilitated.Social MediaPublic meetings of the Council are open to the use of Social Media by attendees to report on or to film/photograph any part of the meeting via Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and blogs. If do not wish to be captured as part of this can you please inform a Scrutiny officer at the start of the meeting. ................
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