Air quality • Planning and development
Air quality consultants for planning assessments
Understand how air quality could affect your development and the evidence your planning application may need. ACP helps you define a proportionate assessment scope and the information needed to move forward.
Agree the scope
Start with the site, proposals and planning authority’s requirements.
Coordinate the evidence
Bring together design, traffic and relevant air quality information.
Plan the next steps
Understand assessment findings, mitigation and any further information needed.
01 / Planning requirements
When might you need an air quality assessment?
Requirements depend on the proposal, its location and local planning policy. A development can affect nearby air quality. Existing pollution can also affect future occupants.
Discuss air quality early if your proposal involves:
- New homes or other sensitive uses near busy roads or emissions sources.
- Changes to traffic, servicing or combustion plant.
- Demolition, earthworks or construction close to sensitive receptors.
- A site in or near an Air Quality Management Area.
- Potential effects on protected habitats.
- A planning condition or validation request addressing air quality.
These factors prompt a scope review. They do not automatically mean that every project needs detailed modelling or new monitoring.
02 / A proportionate approach
Choose the right assessment scope
Screening and planning requirements
Start by checking the proposals, available evidence and relevant planning requirements. This helps identify whether a focused assessment or more detailed work is appropriate.
Operational air quality
An assessment may consider emissions from traffic or plant, alongside exposure at relevant receptors. Where modelling is needed, agree the scenarios, inputs and assumptions before work begins.
Construction dust
Demolition, earthworks, construction and vehicle movements can create different dust risks. A proportionate assessment identifies those risks and the controls needed. Monitoring is a separate consideration, informed by the project and authority requirements.
London: neutral and positive requirements
London’s Air Quality Neutral approach uses emissions benchmarks. It does not mean a development produces no emissions. Air Quality Positive has a different purpose and applies in relevant planning circumstances.
For local context, see our air quality consultants in London.
Monitoring and specialist work
Monitoring can help address gaps in baseline evidence or project-specific requirements. Discuss the purpose, pollutants, locations and duration before commissioning it. Specialist industrial, indoor-air or habitat-related studies need their own agreed scope.
03 / Evidence and interpretation
What an air quality assessment tells you
An assessment examines how development could change air pollution and whether existing conditions affect the proposed use. It brings together the site, relevant sources, receptors and planning requirements. The report explains the evidence, likely effects, limitations and any recommended response.
Pollutants, sources and receptors
| Consideration | What it means for the brief |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) | Consider combustion sources, traffic, background conditions and exposure at relevant locations. |
| Particulate matter (PM₁₀ and PM₂.₅) | Different size fractions have different sources and assessment contexts. Construction dust assessment and wider particulate exposure need clear scopes. |
| Other pollutants | The process and setting may make other substances relevant. Define them from the source information rather than using a standard list for every site. |
| Receptors | Identify where people may be exposed and for how long. Habitats require a separate ecological assessment framework. |
Road traffic and commercial emissions
Traffic assessments need suitable flows, vehicle composition, speeds and future scenarios. Commercial or industrial sources may require plant details, operating patterns and release characteristics. These inputs must match the development being assessed.
Planning and environmental permitting can address different questions. Agree their interfaces early so the evidence is coordinated without duplicating unrelated requirements.
Dispersion modelling and uncertainty
A dispersion model estimates concentrations from defined sources and conditions. It is a representation of a scenario, not a direct measurement or a prediction without uncertainty.
Input quality, meteorological data, background concentrations and model configuration affect the results. Where appropriate, comparison with suitable monitoring helps evaluate performance. The report should explain assumptions, limitations and any sensitivity testing used.
Interpreting significance
The assessment should explain the criteria used and why they fit the project. Consider changes in concentrations alongside existing conditions, relevant exposure and the number or sensitivity of affected receptors.
A model result alone does not decide planning acceptability. Decision-makers consider the assessment, policy, mitigation and other relevant evidence.
Standards, policy and guidance
Legal limits and objectives, planning policies and professional guidance serve different purposes. Apply the relevant pollutant, averaging period and exposure context. A short monitoring period cannot automatically demonstrate compliance with an annual objective.
For London, assess the relevant Air Quality Neutral and Air Quality Positive requirements separately from the local impacts assessment. Neither replaces construction dust considerations.
Ecological receptors
Protected sites may be sensitive to pollutant concentrations or deposition. Ammonia and nitrogen deposition can require particular attention, depending on the source and habitat.
Use the relevant ecological evidence and assessment framework, including cumulative or in-combination effects where applicable. Coordinate this work with ecology surveys and advice; human-health criteria should not be substituted for habitat criteria.
04 / Monitoring support
Air quality monitoring and construction dust
ACP provides monitoring support across England, including Greater London. Start with the purpose of the data: a baseline question, a planning requirement or evidence during works. Agree locations, duration, data checks, reporting and any response arrangements before measurements begin.
Monitoring measures conditions at particular places and times; modelling evaluates defined scenarios. Existing information may be sufficient, or additional evidence may be needed. Neither method is mandatory for every proposal.
Keep dust assessment, management and monitoring distinct
A dust risk assessment considers potential impacts and appropriate controls. A management plan explains how those controls will be delivered. Monitoring provides measurements for review during an agreed programme.
Interpret readings alongside activities, weather and other nearby sources. A raised reading needs investigation under the agreed process; it does not establish its source by itself. Monitoring supports controls and does not replace them.
For a practical monitoring brief, send the site layout, planning conditions, programme and existing dust documents. Discuss your monitoring requirements.
05 / Methods and limitations
Read monitoring evidence in context
Traffic, weather, background conditions and data quality can influence measured concentrations. Compare aligned time periods and explain missing data before interpreting patterns. Air pollution and noise can share traffic sources, but one measurement cannot substitute for the other.
Short observations do not establish annual compliance. Where an annual estimate is needed, use an appropriate method and explain its conditions and uncertainty. Defra provides specific annualisation guidance for diffusion tubes; it is not a universal correction for every dataset.
Low-cost sensors can provide useful indicative information. For LAQM, they are not accepted as the primary method for formal compliance assessment. Their use for model verification or stand-alone compliance evidence needs additional validation against a reference monitor. See Defra’s sensor guidance.
Choose monitoring methods for the measurement objective and required data quality. Modelling also needs suitable inputs and representative conditions. Environment Agency reporting requirements address environmental permitting; apply them within that context rather than treating them as universal planning rules.
06 / Find your starting point
Air quality assessment screening tool
Choose the situation closest to your project. This guide prepares a scoping conversation; it does not determine a legal requirement or replace a planning authority’s advice.
Size, parking and energy: a first check
This checks Stage 1 of the EPUK/IAQM 2017 guidance. It helps identify a starting point for discussion; it does not decide whether planning permission needs an assessment.
Enter zero for a measure that does not apply. Leave it blank if unknown. For mixed-use schemes, enter the relevant area for each use. Your entries stay in this page and are not sent to ACP.
Enter what you know, then run the check.
What does this check use?
Stage 1 combines a size criterion (10+ homes, residential area >0.5 ha, other floorspace >1,000 m², or other site area >1 ha) with either >10 parking spaces or centralised energy/combustion. Meeting both leads to Stage 2 consideration; it does not automatically require detailed modelling. This tool does not automate Stage 2, exposure, construction dust, habitats or local policy. See Table 6.1 and paragraphs 6.10–6.17.
Land-use planning guidance is being updated
Checked 18 October 2026: IAQM’s guidance update announcement confirms a review of the land-use planning guidance. Its current guidance register lists the replacement as in progress, with an indicative Q3 2026 member-consultation timetable.
The published edition remains 2017 v1.2. A publicly available replacement draft with verifiable screening criteria was not found in this review, so this calculator uses the published criteria only.
IAQM advises using the latest published edition until the final replacement is issued. This tab explains the guidance review; it is not a second calculator or a draft assessment result.
Explore other assessment starting points
New homes or sensitive uses near traffic or other sources
Review existing exposure and available local evidence. Consider layout, ventilation and whether a focused or detailed assessment is needed. Send the site plan, proposed uses and planning advice.
More traffic, new plant or industrial activity
Review emission sources and operating scenarios. Traffic or plant data may support screening or modelling. Send the proposed changes and available technical information.
Demolition, earthworks or construction
Consider dust risk, nearby receptors, controls and any monitoring requirements. Send the works programme, site layout and conditions.
A protected habitat may be affected
Coordinate air quality and ecology evidence. Identify relevant pollutants, pathways and potential combined effects. Send existing ecological information.
Indoor air or external pollution entering a building
Separate building ventilation and indoor-source questions from outdoor planning impacts. The applicable building standards depend on the work and regulatory transition.
The site is in London
Check the relevant authority’s validation list alongside London Plan requirements. See London air quality guidance for the local context.
07 / Your project brief
Prepare your air quality assessment brief
Use this checklist to prepare for a scoping discussion. It does not decide whether an assessment is required.
- Site address, boundary plan and planning authority.
- Proposed uses, scale, layout and planning stage.
- Relevant planning conditions or advice already received.
- Existing and proposed traffic, access and servicing information.
- Heating, energy and other combustion plant proposals.
- Demolition, earthworks and construction programme.
- Nearby homes, schools, care facilities and potentially affected habitats.
- Existing monitoring, assessment or environmental information.
- Your submission deadline and other consultant contacts.
If information is missing, flag it in your enquiry. We can discuss which inputs are needed first.
Use our guide to traffic inputs for an air quality assessment to coordinate information with your transport team.
08 / From brief to report
What happens during an assessment?
- Define the brief. Review the proposal, authority requirements and intended submission.
- Agree the evidence. Identify available data, assessment scenarios and any information gaps.
- Assess relevant effects. Apply methods suited to the agreed scope and explain the assumptions.
- Consider mitigation. Identify practical measures and coordinate them with the design team.
- Report the findings. Explain the conclusions, limitations and any further work required.
Agree the deliverables in the proposal. Depending on the scope, these may include a report, figures, assessment calculations and mitigation recommendations. Responses to later design changes or authority comments should also be scoped.
10 / Illustrative design scenario
Design decisions work together
Illustrative scenario — not a client project: a proposed residential building faces a busy road, with a quieter courtyard and habitat nearby. The team needs to coordinate exposure, ventilation, noise and ecological effects before fixing the layout.
| Design option | Questions to test together |
|---|---|
| Move sensitive rooms or outdoor space | Does the new location reduce relevant exposure? What changes for noise, daylight and access? |
| Relocate ventilation intakes | Are intake locations suitable for outdoor pollution and the ventilation strategy? Can acoustic requirements still be met? |
| Add a barrier or vegetation | How could the feature affect dispersion, ventilation, noise and habitat value? Do not assume planting always reduces exposure. |
| Change access or servicing | Do traffic and noise assumptions still agree? Are emissions shifted towards another sensitive receptor? |
Test the proposed package using methods appropriate to the site. No numerical improvement is assumed in this example. Coordinate noise assessments and tree advice with the air quality work.
11 / Common questions
Air quality assessment questions
Does being outside an AQMA mean no assessment is needed?
No. New emissions, existing pollution, sensitive uses and local requirements can make air quality relevant outside an AQMA.
Will the assessment always involve monitoring?
No. Suitable existing evidence may be available. The need for new monitoring depends on data quality, the assessment scope and authority requirements.
How much does an assessment cost?
The fee depends on the assessment scope, available inputs, modelling or monitoring needs and reporting requirements. Send the site details and planning request for a project-specific proposal.
How long will it take?
Timing depends on scope, data availability and any monitoring programme. Agree a realistic programme before commissioning work, especially where other consultants must provide inputs.
Does an air quality report guarantee planning permission?
No. It provides evidence for the planning authority’s decision. Design changes, mitigation or further information may still be needed.
Discuss your air quality project
Send the site location, proposal, planning stage and any authority request. We will discuss the assessment scope, information needed and next steps.
Start with the information you have. Planning conditions, drawings or a council request help us understand the brief.
ACP supports clients across England through consultants based in different parts of the country.
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hello@acp-consultants.com
For background reading, explore air quality and planning.
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13 / Sources and guidance
Technical references
Last reviewed: 18 October 2026.