Dutch Air Quality Innovation Programme concluded
After five years the Air Quality Innovation Programme coordinated by Rijkswaterstaat, the Netherlands’ Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management, is transferring its know-how on measures to improve air quality along motorways to the project principals (the ministries of Transport and Environment), knowledge institutes, engineering consultancies and the market. The know-how has been built up in the course of a series of unique and large-scale practical trials carried out under the innovation programme.
The Netherlands intends to meet those deadlines and the associated standards, which is why the National Cooperative Air Quality Programme (NSL) was created. What this programme essentially comprises is a package of policies to improve Dutch air quality. Besides the NSL, in 2005 the Air Quality Innovation Programme (IPL) was established in pursuit of innovative ways of achieving a further improvement in air quality along the country’s national road grid. The programme was implemented by Rijkswaterstaat with the ministries of Transport and Environment acting as project principals.
Six measures
Basing itself on international literature and laboratory studies, IPL investigated the full array of potentially promising measures to enhance air quality. These included modified roadside noise barriers, cleaning of road surfaces, catalytic coatings, motorway canopies with air treatment, roadside vegetation and Dynamic Traffic Management.
Unique collaboration between government, industry and knowledge institutes
For the first time in Europe, theories about air quality have been put through their paces in large-scale practical trials. In its five years of activity the Innovation Programme organised a series of competitions to tap into the knowledge and creativity available in the marketplace. The unique collaboration between government, industry, research centres and knowledge institutes has generated valuable information on ways of improving ambient air quality. The practical trials were supervised and evaluated by internationally recognised scientists and experts, which means the results are scientifically and internationally recognised.
Final reports and recommendations on use
A number of the measures tested appear to be eligible for practical implementation. Some of the others would appear to be less effective than first anticipated on the basis of literature and laboratory studies. This is also valuable information, though. Now the government can focus on those measures that look most promising.
For each individual measure, the Air Quality Innovation Programme has collaborated with national and international air quality experts to draw up final reports and recommendations on implementation, allowing the market and knowledge institutes to make full use of all the valuable measurement series brought together by IPL.
Information and database
The final reports and recommendations are available for downloading from the Dutch IPL website www.ipluchtkwaliteit.nl or from Kennisplein at www.verkeerenwaterstaat.nl. In addition, a database has been created in which all the measurements obtained during the IPL programme are archived.
For more information you can also visit the Rijkswaterstaat website www.rijkswaterstaat.nl or phone 0800 – 8002 (Monday to Saturday, 06:00 – 22:30).