Air Quality Positive Design: Going Beyond Compliance in Development

There's a quiet revolution happening in how we think about new developments. For years, the bar was set at "do no harm" – don't make air quality worse than it already is. But increasingly, particularly in London, planners are asking a more ambitious question: can new development actually improve the air we breathe?

That's the thinking behind Air Quality Positive design, and it's changing how architects, developers, and engineers approach large-scale projects.

What Does Air Quality Positive Actually Mean?

Air Quality Positive isn't just about meeting minimum standards or ticking regulatory boxes. It's about actively seeking opportunities to enhance local air quality throughout the entire design process. Think of it as the difference between "doing less harm" and "actively doing good."

The approach emerged from a simple realisation: major developments represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape urban environments. When you're building thousands of homes, new transport links, commercial spaces, and public realm, you've got leverage to make meaningful changes to air quality that individual building projects simply can't achieve.

The London Plan 2021 made this mandatory for large-scale developments subject to Environmental Impact Assessment. But even outside London, forward-thinking developers are recognising that Air Quality Positive design isn't just good for people's lungs – it's good for placemaking, marketability, and long-term asset value.

Why Air Quality Matters More Than Ever

Here's something that doesn't get talked about enough: poor air quality kills more people in the UK than road traffic accidents. Particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) contribute to cardiovascular disease, respiratory conditions, and reduced life expectancy. Children growing up in polluted areas show reduced lung development. The health burden is enormous and inequitably distributed, with the poorest communities often exposed to the worst air quality.

Traditional planning approaches focused on ensuring new developments didn't make existing problems worse – the "Air Quality Neutral" concept. That's important, obviously. But when you're already starting from a baseline of poor air quality, maintaining that poor standard isn't particularly ambitious.

Air Quality Positive design flips this around. It asks: given we're going to build here anyway, how can we use this development to actually improve things?

The Connection Between Climate and Air Quality

There's a fascinating interplay between climate change and air quality that makes the Air Quality Positive approach even more critical. As greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere, we're seeing measurable changes in flooding patterns and extreme weather events.

Every 1°C rise in temperature allows the atmosphere to hold about 7% more water vapour. That means heavier rainfall when it comes, increasing both flash flooding risks and the likelihood of rivers overflowing. Warmer temperatures are also melting ice caps, raising sea levels and threatening coastal areas.

But here's where it gets interesting: many measures that improve air quality also help with climate resilience. Energy-efficient buildings that don't belch out combustion pollutants also produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Green infrastructure that filters air pollutants also helps manage surface water flooding through sustainable drainage. Walking and cycling infrastructure that reduces vehicle emissions also reduces carbon footprints.

The climate emergency and the air quality crisis aren't separate problems requiring separate solutions. They're deeply interconnected challenges that need integrated thinking. Air Quality Positive design, done well, addresses both simultaneously.

How Air Quality Positive Design Works in Practice

An Air Quality Positive Statement isn't something you bolt on at the end of a project. It needs to be embedded from the earliest design stages. This requires genuine collaboration between air quality consultants, transport planners, architects, energy specialists, and landscape designers.

Better Design and Reducing Exposure

The starting point is understanding your site. Where are existing pollution sources – busy roads, industrial facilities, railway lines? What are prevailing wind patterns? How do local building heights affect air flow and pollutant dispersion?

Armed with this knowledge, designers can make smarter choices. Locate schools, nurseries, and care homes away from pollution hotspots. Position green spaces where they'll actually filter air rather than just looking nice. Design building layouts that promote air flow rather than creating canyons where pollutants get trapped.

There's proper science behind this. Badly positioned street trees can actually worsen air quality by creating a canopy that traps emissions at breathing height. Get it right, though, and vegetation filters particulates whilst creating pleasant microenvironments. The difference between these outcomes comes down to understanding aerodynamics and working with air quality specialists during design development.

Reducing Building Emissions

Here's something that surprises people: buildings themselves can be significant pollution sources. Traditional gas boilers emit NO₂ and particulates. Diesel backup generators are even worse. Combined Heat and Power plants, if poorly specified, can create local air quality problems even whilst reducing overall carbon emissions.

Air Quality Positive developments tackle this by:

• Prioritising all-electric heating systems powered by renewable energy

• Connecting to existing low-emission heat networks where available

• If combustion is unavoidable, positioning flues to minimise exposure and specifying ultra-low-emission equipment

• Designing buildings to minimise heating demand in the first place through high-performance fabric

The energy strategy and the air quality strategy need to be developed hand-in-glove. Too often they're done in isolation, leading to conflicts where carbon reduction measures inadvertently worsen local air quality, or vice versa.

Transforming Transport

Transport remains the dominant source of urban air pollution. Internal combustion engines emit NO₂, particulates, and a cocktail of other harmful substances. Even electric vehicles generate particulate pollution from brake and tyre wear, though they eliminate tailpipe emissions.

Air Quality Positive developments approach transport holistically:

Active travel prioritisation – Making walking and cycling genuinely attractive through continuous, protected routes. Not just painting some lines on roads but creating infrastructure people actually want to use. Covered cycle parking. Shower facilities. Bike maintenance stations.

Public transport integration – Designing sites around existing or planned public transport nodes. Working with transport authorities on service improvements. Contributing to bus priority measures.

Last-mile delivery solutions – Micro-consolidation centres where deliveries transfer from vans to cargo bikes. Parcel lockers to reduce failed delivery trips. Timing restrictions on servicing to avoid peak pollution periods.

Future-proofing for EVs – Going beyond minimum electric vehicle charging requirements. Installing capacity for future expansion. Ensuring every parking space can be economically converted to EV charging as demand grows.

The aim isn't to eliminate cars entirely – that's unrealistic for many developments – but to create environments where car-free or car-lite lifestyles are genuinely feasible and attractive.

Innovation and Emerging Technologies

The most exciting Air Quality Positive schemes don't just implement known solutions – they pioneer new approaches. Some possibilities:

• Real-time air quality monitoring networks that inform building ventilation strategies

• Green walls and living roofs that actively filter air whilst providing biodiversity benefits

• Street furniture incorporating pollution filtration technologies

• Smart mobility hubs that integrate multiple transport modes seamlessly

• District energy systems that eliminate all local combustion

The key is being willing to try things that haven't been done before. Not every innovation will work perfectly, but we won't improve air quality without experimentation.

Producing an Air Quality Positive Statement

For developments requiring formal Air Quality Positive Statements (generally those subject to EIA), the documentation needs to demonstrate:

Comprehensive analysis – Understanding existing air quality, pollution sources, sensitive receptors, and future trends. This needs proper dispersion modelling, not back-of-envelope calculations.

Design evolution – Showing how air quality considerations influenced design choices. This means getting air quality consultants involved early, not asking them to justify decisions already made.

Measure quantification – Estimating the air quality benefits of proposed measures. How much NO₂ reduction comes from the transport strategy? What's the impact of eliminating gas boilers?

Delivery mechanisms – Explaining how measures will be secured and maintained. Planning conditions, Section 106 agreements, estate management plans – the statement needs to demonstrate measures will actually happen, not just sit in a nice document.

Monitoring and verification – Committing to post-completion monitoring to verify predicted improvements have materialised.

Challenges and Common Pitfalls

Air Quality Positive design isn't always straightforward. Common challenges include:

Conflicting objectives – Energy efficiency might suggest building forms that trap pollutants. Heritage considerations might constrain options for active travel infrastructure. These tensions need working through, not ignoring.

Viability pressures – Some measures cost money. Developers working to tight margins push back. The trick is demonstrating that many Air Quality Positive measures – like smart site layouts – cost little or nothing if incorporated early enough.

Enforcement concerns – Planning authorities worry about whether aspirational statements will translate into built reality. Clear conditions and enforceable requirements are essential.

Knowledge gaps – Not everyone on project teams understands air quality. Education and capacity building matter.

Beyond London: The Wider Picture

Although London pioneered mandatory Air Quality Positive requirements, the principles apply anywhere. Every major development represents an opportunity to improve local environmental quality, whether it's in Manchester, Birmingham, or a market town.

Some forward-thinking local authorities outside London are already requesting Air Quality Positive approaches. As air quality becomes a higher political priority and public awareness grows, expect this to become more widespread.

The Business Case

Developers sometimes view Air Quality Positive as regulatory burden. But there's a compelling business case:

Market differentiation – Health-conscious buyers and tenants increasingly prioritise air quality. Developments marketed on clean air credentials attract premium interest.

Reduced void periods – Commercial tenants recognise that good air quality improves staff wellbeing and productivity.

Futureproofing – As regulations tighten, developments designed for good air quality won't need expensive retrofitting.

Corporate responsibility – For institutional investors with environmental, social, and governance commitments, Air Quality Positive demonstrates genuine sustainability rather than greenwash.

Moving Forward

Air Quality Positive design represents a maturation of how we think about development and environmental quality. It recognises that major projects are too important, too influential, to simply aim for "less bad."

With climate change driving more extreme weather patterns – including the increased flooding risks illustrated in the climate cycle diagram – we need development that actively enhances resilience and environmental quality. Air Quality Positive thinking is part of that shift.

For engineers, planners, and architects, this means expanding professional skill sets. Air quality can no longer be someone else's problem, dealt with in a standalone chapter of the Environmental Statement. It needs integrating into core design thinking from day one.

For developers, it means recognising that environmental quality is fundamental to placemaking, not an optional extra. The most successful developments of the next decade will be those that offer genuinely healthy environments.

And for communities living with poor air quality? It means hope that new development might actually improve things rather than making them worse. That's a revolutionary thought, and one worth fighting for.

Getting Started with Air Quality Positive Design

If you're working on a large development and want to adopt an Air Quality Positive approach:

1. Engage air quality specialists early – At feasibility stage, not when designs are finalised

2. Map your baseline – Understand existing air quality across your site comprehensively

3. Workshop with the full project team – Get transport, energy, landscape, and architectural teams talking together

4. Set measurable targets – Define what air quality improvements you're aiming for

5. Design holistically – Consider how every design decision affects air quality

6. Plan for verification – Commit to monitoring that demonstrates your measures work

The air we breathe is too important to leave to chance. Air Quality Positive design gives us the tools to actively improve it, one development at a time.