Wycombe DC gets glowing report from DEFRA for its Air Quality Action Plan  We have just received confirmation that Wycombe DC's Stage 4 report and newly developed Action Plan were one of the first non London Authority reports in the UK to be approved by DEFRA. They have also been commended for their quality and recognised as best practice for Review & Assessments in the UK. Action Plan & Stage 4 Comments "WDC has a detailed and thorough Stage 4 report. Its approach and resulting conclusions clearly identify a need to retain the existing AQMA. " "The approaches used and conclusions reached were all accepted." "The Action Plan is well structured and presented and rightly focuses on those possible measures that could be employed in order to reduce levels of pollution within the AQMA. The Council has limited powers with respect to the implementation of 'direct measures' as the Highways Agency is the relevant management authority. However, a wide variety of measures are included which the Highways Agency may like to consider with respect to implementation." "The inclusion of other proposed measures covering industry, domestic and energy usage are dealt with in a section covering non-transport issues. Their inclusion is welcomed and shows the Council recognises the need to reduce background concentrations as part of the overall reduction in pollution emissions to assist the action plan in achieving the annual mean objective for NO2." "The proposed measures within the action plan take FULL account of existing policies at local, regional and national levels, and refer in detail to existing funding programmes and initiatives. No measures are in contravention of wider Government policies." This is a well written and soundly based plan, with some minor points of improvement on the Draft Report to take it to 'best practice' for Councils in the UK! The Action Plan was written by Ben Coakley and submitted to DEFRA in October 2002. The Stage 4 report was prepared by AEA Technology and also managed by Ben Coakley of Wycombe District Council.