Putney High Street has already breached the yearly pollution limit in London, just days into 2015.
Readings at Oxford Street and Putney High Street show them to be the first roads in London that are so heavily polluted they broke the annual Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) quota.
In 2012 and 2013 the levels of the pollutant breached the yearly quota within three days of the new year. The latest statistics indicate Putney’s pollution woes are far from over, despite attempts to quell the damaging chemical.
NO2 is harmful to human health and the EU sets a limit of 18 hours a year for NO2 levels to be above 200 micrograms per cubic metre. Putney High Street breached it yesterday and Oxford Street breached it on January 4.
It was recently revealed that a shocking 4,300 people a year in London are dying prematurely as a result of air pollution.
In 2012 pollution in Putney, where average house prices range from £1.5m to £3m, was described as a national disgrace when it exceeded the levels three times in the first three days of the year.
Wandsworth Council has worked to alleviate the pollution problem by including an air quality monitoring station in Putney High Street, carrying out traffic counts and lobbying Transport for London for new investment in buses, which were identified as a major contributor to emissions of NO2 in Putney High Street.
Earlier this year, a Wandsworth Guardian investigation revealed more people were dying of lung diseases in Wandsworth than the national average and thousands remained undiagnosed with potentially fatal conditions according to health bosses.
The NHS identifies smoking as the main cause of respiratory diseases, but links have recently been made to the effects of pollution.
London Assembly Green Party member Jenny Jones said: “Oxford Street and Putney High Street are a disgraceful example of the Government and Mayor’s failure to take responsibility for air pollution.
"As a result even more people will die prematurely and suffer worse asthma and other respiratory conditions. The Government’s attempt to cover this up and hide the truth from local people must be resisted.”
The figures come from data gathered by King’s College London as part of the London Air Quality Network and campaign group Clean Air in London.
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