A study by leading roofing manufacturer Marley Eternit has revealed the UK’s ten most polluted areas and the results are surprising, with the historic port of Bristol coming out at the top of the table. The study looked into levels of nitrogen dioxide across the UK and the results were taken from the UK National Air Quality Archive.
Bristol Old Market had the highest hourly mean of nitrogen dioxide when results were read on Thursday 11th December 2008, followed closely by Marylebone Road in the city of London. Next in the table was the city of Bath, followed by Cromwell Road in London and Manchester Piccadilly in Joint fourth position. Joint sixth place was taken by Bristol St. Pauls and Dumfries respectively, finally followed by Belfast city centre in at eighth, Glasgow centre in ninth and Carlisle roadside in tenth.
Marley Eternit conducted the study to gauge the levels of nitrous oxides (NOx) in the air throughout Britain following the development of its pollution busting EcoLogic tile. Launched last year the EcoLogic tile actually absorbs nitrous oxides from the atmosphere. The tile contains a photocatalyst that reacts in daylight to neutralise the harmful NOx in the air around our homes.
During its lifetime, an average-sized roof with EcoLogic tiles could remove an amount of NOx equivalent to that emitted by a modern car travelling 100,000 miles says Dr Andrew McKnight head of research and development at Marley Eternit, who went on to add:
“The Ecologic tile provides specifiers with lots of scope as its green credentials are superb; The EcoLogic tile is manufactured using nearly 50% of recycled materials and roofs incorporating Ecologic can achieve an ‘A+’ rating in the Green Guide to Specification.”
NOx levels tend to be higher in urban areas, where there is more traffic, and its presence has been blamed for the growing incidence of breathing-related ailments including asthma. The Government has recently set a target to reduce NOx emission levels from 1.6 million tonnes in 2004, to 1.2 million tonnes by 2010.
The EcoLogic coating is currently available on Marley Eternit’s Ludlow Major Tile, This product has a brown granular textured surface to complement a wide range of architectural styles, from urban renewal to new build developments. For more information on Ecologic please log on to www.marleyeternit.co.uk/products or call 01283 722 588.