There are no consequences for not observing the rules in
the air quality legislation. The air quality officer has to inform other people
(colleagues and aldermen) about the relation with health problems and the risks
of not observing the rules. These risks are: no approval by other authorities,
no subsidies from other authorities, juridical procedures by citizens and a bad
image.
Because the responsibility for PM10 and the priority
related to exposure are not mentioned in the Dutch law articles and are not
clearly explained in the explanatory memorandum, some juridical procedures
ended in blocking plans. Of course that is not a good example. It causes a lot
of uncertainty and it is an obstacle for focusing on the real problems in the
larger cities. On the other hand in smaller cities with no exceedances
of the standards, air quality is coming on the agenda this way.
In Utrecht it is
accepted to start from environmental limiting conditions in planning. Sometimes
it is necessary to point out the risks of neglecting the rules.
The goal of environmental officers is not blocking plans,
but to prevent mistakes.
Environmental officers notice problems in an early stage
and are helping other city sectors in solving them.
Large infrastructure and building projects are related to
big budgets. So there is also money for measures to prevent and to solve air
quality problems.
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