Finally the G7 world leaders are waking up to what needs to be done

(From 13 June) This past week, the Group of Seven (G7) world leaders met in Germany for the group’s 41st annual summit.

Needless to say, much was discussed, from the threat of international terrorism to the stability of national economies and, of course, climate change.

In relation to that final point, the leaders made an ambitious declaration.

The group’s members will use their collective influence to try to stop fossil-fuel consumption by the end of this century.

A goal of reducing consumption by 40 to 70 percent from 2010 levels by 2050, and eliminating it completely by 2100, was set in the summit declaration.

The G7 comprises the world’s seven largest economies–including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.S., and U.K.–as well as representatives from the European Council, EU Commission, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Read more: Green Car Reports

This sounds like good news for London’s pollution problem, and for electric car sales

DRIVERS OF diesel cars could be hit with a “pollution penalty” every time they enter London from as early as next year in an attempt to clean up the capital’s air quality.

The charge would be the first of its kind in Britain and comes after new evidence revealed that diesel cars are far more polluting than official figures suggest. A Sunday Times investigation last month found that even diesel cars certified under EU rules as the cleanest yet built are emitting exhaust fumes at up to 9.9 times the official limit.

Diesel cars have traditionally been more fuel-efficient than petrol counterparts but produce higher levels of particulates and nitrogen oxides, which are thought to contribute to respiratory illness and have been blamed for more than 50,000 early deaths in Britain each year.

As previously reported in Driving, London is currently in breach of EU air-pollution rules and the government must submit new air-quality plans to the European Commission by the end of the year or face mounting fines for failing to hit its targets.

Members of the London assembly passed a motion last week calling on the capital’s mayor, Boris Johnson, to investigate new ways of bringing down the city’s pollution levels.

The Liberal Democrat assembly member Stephen Knight said:

“To help tackle the problem, every tool in the public policy toolbox needs to be used, and one option that could be investigated is adapting the congestion charge to add a modest levy on all diesel vehicles entering central London from 2016.”

Source: Driving

The London Evening Standard continues its campaign on London’s poor air quality

More than 1,300 Londoners have already died prematurely due to toxic air so far this year, campaigners warned today.

The shocking death toll includes over 60 estimated fatalities linked to “killer” pollution in Barnet, Croydon and Bromley, and more than 50 in Ealing, Enfield and Havering.

In Wandsworth, Lambeth, Brent, Bexley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Hillingdon, Redbridge and Waltham Forest it was at least 40.

Shadow environment minister Barry Gardiner said:

“So far this year 1,337 people have already died as result of air pollution yet the mayor’s proposals will not bring this down to safe levels until 2030.

“We need a new national framework of low and ultra-low emissions zones within which London must roll out the electrification of buses and the highest vehicle standards for all new fleet vehicles within four years. We need decisive action now to protect our children not vague promises for 15 years down the line.”

Read more: Standard

Drivers and pedestrians have been misled by EU tests aimed at cutting lethal air pollution

WHEN Victoria Kelly sets off around her home city of Manchester she finds the fastest roads — and then goes out of her way to avoid them.

Instead she plots a route that will take her around the clouds of diesel air pollution found along those busier roads, sticking to the leafiest and smallest streets she can find.

It means simple journeys can double in length, but for Kelly, 23, the detours are vital to avoid the airborne toxins that have twice put her into intensive care with asthma attacks like those that have killed two of her friends.

“An attack is like breathing out through a straw into a bucket of sand with an elephant sitting on your chest,” she said. “Air pollution is one of the most likely things to set it off — so I do all I can to avoid it.”

Kelly is one of 5.4m people in Britain diagnosed with asthma. The condition kills three people a day — and traffic pollution, mainly from diesel vehicles, is a key cause. A fifth of those are children — such as Will Cort, a 13-year-old whose childhood in central London has been blighted by asthma.

“I normally get attacks at night and wake up because I can’t breathe. It can go on for days,” he says.

Asthma can be triggered by many factors but it is no coincidence that whenever air pollution levels rise, Britain’s hospitals and GPs see a surge of patients with asthma. Last month Public Health England published research showing that thousands of people suffered attacks when smog laden with tiny “particulate” particles and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) gas typical of diesel emissions hit Britain last spring.

Read more: The Sunday Times