Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the effect of emissions of oxides of nitrogen from waste incineration sites on the health of people living within (a) half a kilometre, (b) one kilometre and (c) two and a half kilometres of such sites.

In order to operate a waste incineration plant, operators must obtain an environmental permit from the Environment Agency (EA). As part of the decision making process for new permits, the EA assesses the results of air quality modelling for a number of different pollutants, including oxides of nitrogen (NOx), to ensure that emissions will not have a significant impact on the environment or harm human health.

The air quality modelling will predict the levels of NOx that can be expected as a result of the emissions under worst-case conditions, including at sensitive receptors such as houses or playing fields. These levels are known as the process contribution (PC) and the maximum PC can occur at a range of distances from the site, depending on the technical characteristics of the plant, the local topography and the local weather conditions.

The EA will make an assessment of whether the maximum PC is acceptable, including by taking into account the existing levels of pollution in the area and comparing the total level of pollution with the relevant environmental standards. Because their decision is based on the maximum value, the impact of emissions at other locations where the PC will be less are automatically taken into account. There is therefore no need to do individual assessments of the effects of NOx at the distances specified in the question.