pollution cause by petrol

Super unleaded petrol, which accounts for about 8% of petrol sales, is unsafe and should be banned, according to a new report from the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution. The commission reveals that unleaded super premium petrol typically has a much higher aromatics content (about 45%) than either premium leaded (about 30%) or premium unleaded (about 33%). The report recommends that the government should act not only to end the sale of unleaded super premium petrol but also to support a reduction in the permitted benzene content of petrol to 1%, from the current average in petrol sold in Britain of 2–3%.

Evidence to the commission from sources including local authorities, environmental pressure groups, and individuals focused on the risk of cancer from exposure to aromatics, such as benzene, which have been linked with cancer and childhood leukemia. Other health concerns include the respiratory effects of exposure to nitrogen dioxide, ground level ozone, and particulates.

The commission's role was to examine threats to the environment and health from the present transport system and, in view of the system's forecast growth, to consider whether present trends are sustainable in the longer term. One of the commission's main objectives is to achieve full compliance by 2005 with the World Health Organizations guidelines for pollutants related to transport.

Another of the report's 110 recommendations is that the differential duty that favors unleaded petrol should be retained. It says: “It is reassuring that emissions of lead from road vehicles have now declined sharply, primarily because of the reduced lead content of leaded petrol.” But other groups, such as the Natural Environment Research Council, believe that lead in the environment is still building up and that lead in topsoil has accumulated over time and shows no signs of diminishing.

The commission found that the highest concentrations of pollutants in the atmosphere occurred at the kerbside of major roads and inside vehicles traveling on major roads. The report says that “there is ground for concern that young children are exposed to high concentrations of pollutants both as passengers in cars and when they are on pavements not far above the height of exhaust pipes.” It recommends that the government should consider making systems that filter the air supply to the interior of cars a standard requirement.

The commission's report has been welcomed by environmental pressure groups, although the Natural Environment Research Council has expressed concern about the health effects of platinum, which is produced by catalytic converters and is appearing in increasing concentrations in road dust. The Department of the Environment is currently funding a study of platinum levels.

The report, which took more than two years to complete, broadly endorses the government's framework for a sustainable transport policy. The commission recommends an increase in the use of cycles to 10% of all urban journeys by 2005, compared with 2.5% now. It also recommends that existing cycle ways should be extended and new ones built. At the same time it targets a reduction in accidents involving pedestrians and cyclists.