BROMSGROVE is among the cleanest places to live in the Midlands – and that’s official.

An air quality audit released by Friends of the Earth has shown that there is not a single place in the district that breaches nitrogen dioxide (NO2) air pollution levels.

Worcestershire is one of the cleanest counties in the country with only seven places – three in Worcester and four in Kidderminster – recording levels among the recognised safe mark.

By comparison, neighbouring or nearby counties or local authorities such as Birmingham (46), Dudley (18) and Warwickshire (14) have far more pollution hotspots.

Altogether, almost 2,000 locations nationally have breached the Air Quality Objective levels, including 218 in the West Midlands as a whole.

A leading cause of NO2 pollution is road traffic emissions – and high levels of the gas, which irritates the lungs, can cause breathing difficulties, coughing and flare-ups of conditions such as asthma.

Friends of the Earth is campaigning for Clean Air Zones to be rolled out in far more places than are currently being planned, supported by measures such as improved infrastructure to support safe cycling and walking.

Chris Crean, West Midlands campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said: “It’s unforgivable to see many locations across the region over air quality limits, leaving thousands of us breathing dangerously polluted air.

“Air pollution is often an issue thought of as affecting only the biggest cities. The reality is that unacceptably toxic air can be found across much of the UK, even in smaller towns.

“It is harming the health of people across the country and is especially bad for young children whose lungs are still developing.

“The government needs to step up and do more to deal with this air pollution crisis – they can’t just carry on leaving the difficult decisions with local authorities, many of which are severely under-resourced.”