Air pollution frequently asked questions

Air quality
Smoke
Dust nuisance
Fumes
Odours

Air quality

What is the air quality in Ealing/my area?

You can find information about today's air quality in Ealing. Information about the pollution levels on previous days or weeks, you can access the London Air Quality Network web site at www.londonair.org.uk

What action is the council taking to reduce pollution levels?
The whole borough was designated an Air Quality Management Area in December 2000 and the council has written an Air Quality Action Plan setting out a series of measures to improve Air Quality. This includes measures to reduce the amount of traffic on the roads and to clean up exhaust emissions from vehicles on the road. The Air Quality Action Plan can be obtained from Ealing's website.

Can you prevent stationary cars running their engines? (For instance, people warming up their engines, waiting outside shops, buses at bus stops for unnecessary lengths of time)
If the vehicle is on private property, (a driveway for instance), then unfortunately, the Council has no powers to prevent this. If on the highway, you witness a driver who persistently refuses to switch off an idling engine, or if you know of a place where it is of particular concern, we can take the details from you, and pass them to an Environmental Health Officer. New powers introduced by the Government enable local authorities in England to request drivers to switch off vehicle engines being run unnecessarily when parked on the highway and to issue fixed penalties of £20 to those drivers who refuse to co-operate. (The Road Traffic (Vehicle Emissions) (Fixed Penalty) Regulations 2002)

What can be done about smoky diesel vehicles?
If you see a vehicle with an excessively smoky exhaust, you can report it to the Vehicle Inspectorate on 0870 6060440 (press option 6).This applies to commercial vehicles only, including buses and taxis. You will need to note the following details:

vehicle registration number
with taxis – also the taxi licence number
type of vehicle
date, time, place you saw the vehicle, and if possible
the name of the firm operating the vehicle;
your name and address (to prevent malicious reports) which will remain confidential.

Further information is available from www.vosa.gov.uk

Smoke
My neighbour's bonfires are a nuisance, what can I do?
If you have a problem with smoke from a neighbour's bonfire try to approach your neighbour and politely tell them how the bonfire is affecting you. Smoke from a bonfire is likely to be a nuisance if materials being burnt are wet, damp, synthetic, rubbers, painted or otherwise treated. If dry garden cuttings were being burnt, it would have to be a regular problem to be considered a statutory nuisance, or occur in inappropriate weather conditions (eg windy, warm or sunny, when smoke is likely to affect people in their gardens), while their washing is out or if it is blowing into their windows.

There are no specific laws to prohibit bonfires, however if it becomes a statutory nuisance an environmental health officer may be able to take action against the person responsible.

Council officers can take the following steps:

they may write to the person causing the nuisance saying that a complaint has been made and asking them to take steps to avoid this
or
an officer may visit if available at the time of the bonfire burning to see if in their judgement the smoke amounts to a statutory nuisance

Am I allowed to have a bonfire in my garden?

Yes if used with care, the occasional bonfire should not cause a major problem. However we would advise you try alternatives to bonfires such as:

composting
recycling, special collections and skips
using Greenford Road Reuse and Recycling Centre

If you cannot avoid having a bonfire:

avoid evenings, weekends and bank holidays when people want to enjoy their gardens
avoid damp, still days when smoke hangs in the air or if windy as smoke can blow into people's windows
avoid times when your neighbour has washing hanging out
do not burn materials that are wet, damp, plastic, rubber, painted, glued or otherwise treated.

What am I allowed to burn on a bonfire?

only burn natural material which is dry enough to enable it to be burned quickly and with a minimum of smoke
never burn household rubbish, rubber tyres or anything containing plastic, foam, paint or varnish etc
never use old engine oil, menthols or petrol to light the fire
soft vegetable waste and grass cuttings etc which is difficult to dry should be recycled, composted or buried
do not burn oily rags and other materials likely to produce heavy or pungent smoke

What action can the council take against people for persistently having bonfires/causing smoke?
If an officer has witnessed smoke and is satisfied that a statutory nuisance exists, they must issue a notice requiring the person responsible to stop causing the nuisance. If the person, without reasonable excuse, fails to comply with the notice and he or she is found guilty of an offence they can be prosecuted by the local authority. Offenders may be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £5,000 (£20,000 for industrial, trade or business premises).

What can I do with a large number of items, if I don't want to have a bonfire?
If you have a large number of waste from the garden or house clearance it might be worth hiring a skip or using the councils' special collection service. Garden waste and tree cuttings as well as furniture etc; can be recycled or taken to Greenford Road Reuse and Recycling Centre.

I received a warning letter; I would like to know who complained about me?
We are not able to reveal this information, as it is confidential and covered by the Data Protection Act.

There are commercial premises burning/causing smoke, what can I do?

You can report this to us, and an officer will investigate and take appropriate action to stop it. If dark smoke is emitted from a bonfire on commercial, industrial or trade premises, an offence is being committed under the Clean Air Act 1993 and the person may be prosecuted if dark smoke is witnessed by an environmental health officer.

My neighbour has regular barbecues right under my windows, Can the council stop this?
Smoke from barbecues may be considered as a statutory nuisance if they are very frequent and in an unsuitable location. An officer of the Environmental Health Department can investigate and send a warning letter or take formal action against the person responsible.

Occasional barbecues are unlikely to amount to a statutory nuisance unless unsuitable fuel causes excessive amounts to smoke.

Chimney smoke
Can I use the fireplace in my house?
Yes, but only if you use 'smokeless' fuel. The London Borough of Ealing is a smoke control area. Under the Clean Air Act 1993, it is an offence to emit smoke from a chimney by burning wood or ordinary coal.

Is it an offence to emit smoke from chimneys?
Yes, under the Clean Air Act 1993, it is an offence to emit smoke from any chimney for domestic or commercial use. Any person emitting smoke from a chimney can be prosecuted and may be fined up to £1000. It is also an offence to emit dark smoke from any chimney, (dark smoke is determined by comparing the colour with shades on a chart used by environmental health officers'). Any person emitting dark smoke may be fined up to £1000 if emitted from a private dwelling or £5000 if from commercial and industrial premises.

Dust nuisance
There is a huge building site working away near me and there is dust everywhere, What action can you take?
We can look at what is causing the dust and require the site manager to take the necessary precautions to stop it from happening again. In dry weather it may be necessary to spray water and dampen loose materials or some of the practices on site may need to be changed. An officer will want to witness the dust nuisance.

My neighbour is doing some work to the outside of their house, this is causing a lot of dust to fall on my car, what can I do about it?
Try to talk politely to your neighbour and explain how you are affected. Unfortunately there is no formal action the council can take if you're neighbour is doing the work himself, however, if tradesmen are on site and causing dust nuisance, officers can investigate and take appropriate action in cases where they witness a statutory nuisance.

Fumes
My neighbour re-sprays cars in his garage regularly, and I can smell the fumes. Is this legal?
It may be a statutory nuisance. An environmental health officer can investigate and if a nuisance is witnessed from your premises, an abatement notice will be served on the person causing the nuisance to stop it from happening again. If you think your neighbour is running a business from home without permission, we will take details and pass to the planning department for you.

I live on a bus route and the fumes from the buses are overpowering, what can I do?
If you see a bus or other vehicle emitting smoke from their exhaust, you could take down the registration number and report them to the Vehicle Inspectorate on 0870 6060440. Further information is available from this website www.vosa.gov.uk

Odours
I live near a restaurant, and have to put up with the smell of cooking all the time. Can I do anything?
Yes, we will take the details from you and an Environmental Health Officer can investigate. If it is found to be a statutory nuisance an abatement notice can be served on the appropriate person, requiring steps to be taken to stop or reduce the odour.

My neighbours' extractor fan from their kitchen points directly into my garden. Can I make them change its location?
In domestic situations, the minimum distance of a duct outlet to an openable window is approximately 1ft (30 cm). We can take the details from you and pass to the building control section, who can confirm if the extract is legal.

My neighbours chain-smoke cigars, and its making my house and garden smell. What can I do?
This is a private issue and not dealt with by council officers. You could try talking to your neighbours and tell them politely how it is affecting you. If this does not improve the situation you could ask the Ealing Neighbour Mediation Service to help you. They provide confidential, impartial, independent and free service to help neighbours resolve their problems.

I think there is something under my floorboards, which is making an unpleasant smell in my house. Can the council help me?
Council Property – contact your area housing area manager.
Private property - this is the responsibility of the homeowner.
Try and locate source of smell and take the appropriate action eg call the gas board to check gas leak. Check drains call a plumber if necessary or put down bleach disinfectant, de-odouriser etc.

The drain in my back garden smells awful. Who can I report this to?

Council property – contact your area housing area manager.
Private property - this is the responsibility of the homeowner. A regular dose of bleach may prevent further problems. If necessary, the drain may need to be unblocked.
Neighbouring private property – this can be dealt with by residential services on (020) 8825 6622
Neighbouring commercial property – this can be dealt with by business regulation and support on (020) 8825 6666.

My neighbour has a compost heap/rubbish accumulation, right near my back door and it smells awful.
Try first talking to your neighbours and tell them politely how it is affecting you. Alternatively you can ask the Ealing Mediation Service to help you; they provide confidential, impartial, independent and free service to help neighbours resolve their problems. Contact them on (020) 8575 9500. There is no service for overgrown gardens unless there is a rat/mice infestation – refer to Pest Control

There's an awful smell coming from my neighbour's property. What shall I do about it?
Try first talking to your neighbours and tell them politely how it is affecting you. Alternatively you can ask the Ealing Mediation Service to help you; they provide confidential, impartial, independent and free service to help neighbours resolve their problems. Contact them on (020) 8575 9500. The council's residential services section may be able to investigate cause of smell and take appropriate action if they consider it a health risk, contact them on (020) 8825 6622.

There is a smell of food/chemicals/cooking/in the air. I don't know where it is coming from. What can I do?
When the smell is particularly strong, you should try to identify where it is coming from. It may help to keep a diary of times and dates when it is at it's worst. We can then take the details and an environmental health officer can investigate.