A Recommendation for a United Kingdom Air Quality Standard for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons

Expert Panel on Air Quality Standards

The Expert Panel on Air Quality Standards (EPAQS) was established in 1991. The terms of reference of the Panel are:

"To advise the Secretaries of State for the Environment, Scottish Ministers, National Assembly for Wales, and the Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland), as required, on non-occupational ambient air quality standards, with particular reference to the levels of airborne pollutants at which no or minimal effects on human health are likely to occur;

i. taking account of the best available evidence

• of the effects of air pollution on human health and
• of progressive development of the air quality monitoring network; but

  ii. without reference to the practicality of abatement or mitigation measures, the economic costs and economic benefits of pollution control measures or other factors pertinent to the management rather than the assessment of risk;

to identify gaps in the knowledge needed for standard setting and suggest potential priority areas for future research;

to advise on other aspects of air quality and air pollution referred to it;

for the purpose of informing the development of policy on the improvement of air quality and increasing public knowledge and understanding of air quality issues."

MEMBERSHIP OF THE PANEL

Chairman

Professor A Seaton CBE, MD, FRCP, FRCPE, FFOM, FMedSci
University of Aberdeen Medical School

Members

Professor J G Ayres BSc, MD, FRCP, FRSA
Birmingham Heartlands Hospital and University of Warwick

Professor H R Anderson MD, MSc, FFPHM
St Georges Hospital Medical School, London

Dr P J Baxter MD, MSc, FRCP, FFOM
University of Cambridge

Professor P G J Burney MA, MD, FRCP, FFPHM
The Medical School of Guy's, Kings' and St Thomas' Hospitals, Kings College London

Professor R L Carter CBE, MA, DM, DSc, FRCPath, FFPM
Royal Marsden Hospital and University of Surrey

Dr J W Cherrie BSc, PhD, FBIOH
University of Aberdeen and Institute of Occupational Medicine, Edinburgh

Dr A E Cockcroft MD, FRCP, DIH, FFOM
Occupational Health and Safety Unit, The Royal Free Hospital, London

Professor D N M Coggon MA, PhD, DM, FRCP, FFOM, FMedSci
MRC Environmental Epidemiology Unit, University of Southampton

Dr R G Derwent MA, PhD
Meteorological Office

Professor R M Harrison PhD, DSc, FRSC, FRMetS, Hon MFPHM, Hon FFOM
University of Birmingham

Professor S T Holgate BSc, MD, DSc, FRCP, FRCPE, CBiol, FIBiol, FRSA, FMedSci
Faculty of Medicine, Southampton General Hospital

Mr J F Hurley MA
Institute of Occupational Medicine, Edinburgh

Observers

Dr H Jackson PhD
Health and Safety Executive

Dr P T C Harrison PhD, CBiol, MIBiol
Institute for Environment and Health, Leicester

Dr L Smith PhD
Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions

Assessors

Dr I Hall PhD
Scottish Executive

Mr N McMahon MSc, MCIEH, FRSH
Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland)

Dr P Tromans BM, BCh, MFPHM
National Assembly for Wales

Secretariat

Dr M L Williams PhD
Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions

Professor R L Maynard BSc, MB, BCh, MRCP, MRCPath, FIBiol
Department of Health

Dr S M Coster PhD
Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions

Dr H Walton PhD
Department of Health

Dr P Green PhD (Secretariat until June 1998)
Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions

Ms J Dixon MSc (Secretariat from June 1998)
Institute of Environmental Policy, University College London

Dr C Tuckett PhD (Secretariat until February 1999)
Institute for Environment and Health, Leicester

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We thank the following individuals and organisations for their help.

Mr Peter Coleman, AEA Technology, National Environmental Technology Centre, Culham, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX14 3DB for the analysis of United Kingdom air pollution emissions and ambient concentration data, advice and comments.

Dr Ben Armstrong, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, for advice and comments.

Professor Peter Farmer, MRC Toxicology Unit, University of Leicester, for advice and comments.

We also thank the individuals and organisations for their comments on the draft of this report, which was published in October 1998, listed at Annex A.