+44 1865 259200
Aether was commissioned to undertake an air quality assessment, air quality neutral assessment and construction dust assessment for a proposed large residential development on Edenham Way in Westbourne Park in London.
The challenge
The development is located within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) where there have been wide spread exceedances of annual mean nitrogen dioxide concentrations in recent years, primarily due to high levels of traffic. Therefore RBKC has declared the whole borough as an Air Quality Management Area and air quality is therefore a key issue for the planning application.
The solution
The dispersion modelling tool ADMS-Roads, was used in combination with local meteorological and monitoring data, traffic data and energy centre data to predict nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM10) concentrations at the site and at nearby residential locations. This allowed concentrations at the development site pre and post development to be assessed and appropriate mitigation to be put in place.
The modelling showed that in the pre development scenario, annual mean nitrogen dioxide concentrations were predicted to be above the objective at all locations. This was primarily due to the high background concentrations. With development, the change in concentrations was predicted to be negligible due to no increase in car journeys being assumed and the energy centre impact being minimal.
An air quality neutral assessment was undertaken and found to be compliant with London’s ‘air quality neutral’ guidance for buildings and transport.
Emissions and dust from the construction phase of a development can have a significant impact on local air quality. A brief assessment was undertaken to highlight the main issues and suggestions of mitigation provided.
The result
Due to the predicted exceedances of annual mean nitrogen dioxide concentrations, it was recommended that NOx/NO2 filters were installed in all of the flats. In addition the developer was encouraged to consider further mitigation measures in order to minimise the use of private vehicles by residents.
Melanie Hobson
Director
Related case studies
Industrial air quality assessment
Category: Construction and Property Developers, Air Quality Assessments
Aether was commissioned by Ballymore to undertake an air quality assessment for a proposed energy centre in phase 2 of the development at Royal Wharf in the London borough of Newham.
Read case studyResidential AQA, Westbourne Park in London
Category: Construction and Property Developers, Air Quality Assessments
Aether was commissioned to undertake an air quality assessment, air quality neutral assessment and construction dust assessment for a proposed large residential development on Edenham Way in Westbourne Park in London.
Read case studyResidential Air Quality Assessment, Dartford
Category: Construction and Property Developers, Air Quality Assessments
A case study of the Air Quality Assessments Aether delivers for residential developments, here for a proposed development in Dartford.
Read case studyNews
Latest news
Posted on: 17 March 2026
Central Asia Study Tour: Air Quality Workshop
Aether provided representatives from Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan) who were visiting the UK on a study tour with an introduction to air quality management.
Read full storyPosted on: 13 January 2026
Devolved Governments Air Pollutant Emissions Inventories
The air pollutant emissions inventories for England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland were published in September 2025. The data covers the period 2005 to 2023, for the pollutants ammonia, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, non-methane volatile organic compounds, PM10, PM2.5, sulphur dioxide, and lead.
Read full storyPosted on: 11 December 2025
Aether provided training to strengthen Government of Jersey’s climate policy modelling capacity
Aether completed a project for to train staff in Government of Jersey in using Aether's Carbon Scenario Model to quantify the carbon impacts of net zero policies. The model is a key tool for the Government of Jersey for informing policy decisions on climate actions, and other related policies.
Read full storyPosted on: 6 October 2025
Aether Experts Contribute to IPCC Report on Short-Lived Climate Forcers
In the first week of October Richard Claxton and Sergii Shmarin were in Istanbul, contributing as lead authors to the upcoming IPCC Methodology Report on Short-Lived Climate Forcers (SLCFs). SLCFs - such as black carbon, and other ozone precursors play a critical role in climate change and air quality. The new methodology report will provide essential guidance for countries to improve their emissions inventories and strengthen climate action.
Read full storyFilter news by category
Aether Blog Air Pollution Air Quality Assessments Barriers to Net Zero Capacity Building Carbon Footprint Climate Emergency Climate Equality Climate Finance Consumption COP28 Culture Data Visualisation Economic Status Emissions Reporting European Topic Centre GHG Infrastructure Inventories Local Government Mitigation MRV National Government Net Zero Oxfam Paris Agreement Policy Recruitment Society Stakeholder Engagement Waste Sector Wider Impacts
Testimonial
