The Air Quality (Ozone) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003

Public Information

9.—(1) The Department shall ensure that up-to-date information on concentrations of ozone in ambient air is routinely made available to the public.

(2) The information on concentrations of ozone in paragraph (1) shall be updated –

(a) where appropriate and practicable, on an hourly basis; and

(b) in all other cases, as a minimum, on a daily basis.

(3) The information threshold and alert threshold for ozone set out in Part I of Schedule 7 shall apply.

(4) Information made available under paragraph (1) shall include –

(a) an indication of each time and the extent to which ozone concentrations exceeded –

(i) the long-term objectives for the protection of health;

(ii) the information threshold; or

(iii) the alert threshold for the relevant averaging period; and

(iv) a short assessment of those exceedances and their effects on health;

(b) comprehensive annual reports; and

(c) timely information about actual or predicted exceedances of the alert threshold.

(5) The annual reports referred to in paragraph (4)(c) shall, at least, contain –

(a) for human health, an indication of all exceedances of the target value, long-term objective or alert threshold for the relevant averaging period;

(b) for vegetation –

(i) an indication of any exceedance of the target value or long-term objective; and

(ii) where appropriate, a short assessment of the effects of any such exceedance.

(6) The information referred to in paragraph (5)(b) may include, where appropriate –

(a) further information and assessments on vegetation protection, which sets out for suburban, rural and rural background stations based on one hour averaging, accumulated from May to July, a report of value for each year, where levels of ozone concentrations in ambient air exceed 6,000μg/m³·h; and

(b) information on precursor substances insofar as these are not covered by existing European Community legislation.

(7) Information and reports required to be published by these Regulations shall be published by appropriate means, including, as appropriate, broadcast media, press, publications, information screens, the internet or other computer network services.

(8) Where there has been an exceedance of the information threshold or alert threshold for ozone, the information specified in Part II of Schedule 7 shall be supplied to the public.

(9) Where practicable, the information specified in Part II of Schedule 7 shall be provided to the public where an exceedance of the information threshold or alert threshold for ozone is predicted.

(10) Information made available to the public under this Regulation shall be clear, comprehensible and accessible.