Brandywell site 'breached EU air pollution target'

Air quality targets were breached in relation to fuel used to heat homes

The level of a pollutant linked to the burning of domestic solid fuel has breached an EU target in Northern Ireland for the first time in four years, an air quality report has found.

Levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are measured at three sites in Northern Ireland.

In 2016, a site at Brandywell, Londonderry, exceeded the annual mean target.

However, two other sites were compliant.

These were at Ballykeel in Ballymena, County Antrim, and at Kilmakee Leisure Centre in Dunmurry, Belfast.

But all three sites were in breach of much stricter targets set under UK law.

The information was contained in a statistical report on air pollution in Northern Ireland.

Data was collected from 21 monitoring stations.

Objectives for most air quality pollutants were met.

But at three monitoring stations for nitrogen dioxide - a pollutant associated with road traffic - targets were not met.

Traffic pollution targets were also breached

They were in Belfast's Stockman's Lane; Downpatrick in County Down and Dungiven, County Londonderry.

Along with the Department for Agriculture and Environment, district councils have a duty to carry out air quality monitoring and where air quality falls below acceptable standards they are obliged to produce a plan to deal with it.

On Tuesday, the Republic of Ireland announced a nationwide ban on the burning of smoky coal.

It extends an existing ban of sales in towns and cities.

It will come into effect in 2019.