As of July 2026, Defra's live register records 399 Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) declarations for nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and 58 for particulate matter (PM₁₀) across the UK, plus a small number for sulphur dioxide. Traffic-related NO₂ remains overwhelmingly the reason UK councils declare AQMAs — and whether your site sits inside one is one of the first questions in any planning air quality screening.
Here is the current picture, nation by nation, taken from Defra's AQMA summary data.
AQMA declarations by pollutant and nation (July 2026)
| Pollutant | England | Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland | London | UK total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) | 304 | 32 | 12 | 16 | 35 | 399 |
| Particulate matter (PM₁₀) | 19 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 28 | 58 |
| Sulphur dioxide (SO₂) | 4 | — | — | — | — | 4 |
Note on counting: Defra counts one entry per pollutant, so an AQMA declared for both NO₂ and PM₁₀ appears twice in the table. The figures are best read as "declarations", not unique areas — and they change as councils declare and revoke.
Why NO₂ dominates the AQMA map
Almost nine in ten declarations are for nitrogen dioxide, and the overwhelming source is road traffic — congested corridors, junctions and street canyons where emissions build up next to homes. That is why planning air quality assessments lean so heavily on traffic data, and why introducing new residents next to a busy road triggers exposure questions even outside an AQMA.
The quiet trend: AQMAs are being revoked
The register is not only growing — it is also shrinking in places. As UK roadside concentrations have fallen, councils whose monitoring shows sustained compliance are formally revoking their AQMAs. A current example: Elmbridge Borough Council revoked all six of its AQMAs in February 2026 after years of compliant monitoring. Do not assume the AQMA boundary you remember still exists — or that its absence means air quality is no longer a planning issue there.
Does your site need an air quality assessment? Quick screening table
| Your situation | Air quality assessment likely needed? |
|---|---|
| Site inside or adjacent to a current AQMA | Yes |
| New homes introducing residents close to a busy road, even outside an AQMA | Often yes — exposure screening |
| Scheme materially changing traffic (new trips, car parking, HGV movements) | Yes — EPUK/IAQM screening criteria apply |
| Demolition or significant earthworks near homes | Yes — construction dust assessment to IAQM guidance (v2.2, 2024) |
| Small householder extension with no traffic or dust implications | Usually no |
Formal screening uses the EPUK/IAQM land-use planning criteria alongside your council's local requirements under the Local Air Quality Management regime (Defra LAQM.TG(22)). London schemes also face the London Plan's air quality neutral policy.
How Fortress Associates can help
Our automated air quality assessment service produces a planning-ready AQA in minutes, free, using live official datasets at the moment the report is created — Defra background concentration maps, national AQMA boundaries, monitoring network data and DfT traffic counts. It assesses NO₂, PM2.5, PM10 and NOx plus AQMA and smoke-control-area status, following EPUK/IAQM criteria, IAQM dust guidance (v2.2, January 2024) and Defra LAQM.TG(22), for every UK local authority. See our full planning report services or contact us about your site.
Sources & further reading
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