BRADFORD Council is working with the government to develop a local air quality plan which sets out how it will meet the legal limits for nitrogen dioxide in the district.

A plan must be submitted to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by October 31 after it emerged that some roads would not reach legal levels of nitrogen dioxide for nine years.

A campaign called Clean Air Bradford was recently launched at a meeting in Shipley attended by 30-40 concerned people.

Simon Bowens, regional campaign coordinator at Friends of the Earth, said: "It was a positive meeting. We want to ensure Bradford Council take action.

"We want to be absolutely assured that Bradford can get to grips with it.

"An estimated 220 people in Bradford district die every year because of particulate pollution and most of that comes through road traffic."

Green Councillors Kevin Warnes and Martin Love (Shipley) have demanded Bradford Council do more to tackle the air pollution crisis across the district.

Both councillors attended the launch of Clean Air Bradford in Shipley on Saturday afternoon to speak to concerned residents and campaigners who want to see more being done to tackle air pollution in Bradford District.

Councillor Kevin Warnes said: “It was great to see so many people with a wealth of experience coming together looking to come up with ways to tackle pollution.

“Some of the most polluted roads in our district are right here in Shipley. Bradford Council really does need to stop and think about how we can improve this for the people living here.

“There is a lot of frustration that in one breath the Council claims to want to tackle air pollution but then it approves an application to build Incinerator in the Aire Valley, or starts consulting about widening roads in Shipley to make it easier for HGVs to come through the town.”

Last year, Bradford District Green Party launched their Let Bradford Breathe campaign and put forward ideas to tackle the problem.

These included making sure that all buses and taxis meet low emission standards and make walking and cycling easier and safer across Bradford District.

Coun Love added “We need to take a step back and look at the big picture here. Looking at traffic is only part of the solution.

“Part of the problems come down to national policy, but we need to think about planning policy. Why is Bradford Council allocating land for housing and industry in places where the only way to get around is to drive?”

Bev Maybury, Strategic Director for Health and Wellbeing at Bradford Council, said: “We all need to understand and take responsibility for the implications that air pollution has not only on the environment but also how it affects our health, especially on young children, the elderly and people with heart and lung problems. I am really pleased that we are in a position where we will be planning ahead to try and alleviate the issue of air pollution in every way we can in Bradford and hopefully the health burden of air pollution can be reduced.”