About the Air Pollution Information System

APIS provides a comprehensive source of information on air pollution and the effects on habitats and species. APIS has been developed in partnership by the UK conservation agencies and regulatory agencies and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

[APIS does not provide information on the effects of air pollution on human health. For information on this topic please go to UK-AIR or Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) or Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP)]

The work of APIS is jointly funded between the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology and the UK pollution and conservation agencies including Natural Resources Wales (NRW), the Environment Agency, Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Natural England, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), Scotland and Northern Ireland Forum for Environmental Research (SNIFFER), the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

APIS is a support tool for staff in the UK conservation and regulatory agencies, industry and local authorities for assessing the potential effects of air pollutants on habitats and species. As such, it aims to enable a consistent approach to air pollution assessment across the UK. Other potential users include non-governmental organisations, universities, students or anyone interested in finding out more about air pollution effects on wildlife.

APIS provides:-
Overview sections on:
- Pollutants and their impacts;
- Receptors and key air pollution concerns; and
- Legislation and international obligations

Interrogation by:-
- Pollutant (e.g. sulphur dioxide or ozone);
- Habitats or species; and
- broad Ecosystems

Information on:-
- Habitat and species responses to different air pollutants;
- Critical loads and levels;
- Deposition and concentration data;
- Simple site based screening assessment; and
- Biomonitoring methods

The information in APIS will be used to inform assessments of Pollution Prevention and Control applications and to inform assessments required under the Habitats Regulations or other legislation. However, it is not the purpose of APIS to provide guidance or policies for undertaking such assessments, which are covered separately by the conservation and regulatory agencies.

In addition to the APIS steering group members, thanks should also go to the following people for their contributions to APIS - Alan Davison (University of Newcastle), Richard Douglas and Brian Rippey (University of Ulster), Ulli Dragosits (University of Edinburgh), Simon Langan (Macaulay Land Use Research Institute), and Kim Harding, Neil Cape, Lucy Sheppard, Heath Malcolm, Laurence Carvalho, Dan Osborn, Jane Hall, and Ron Smith from CEH.

We'd like your views on APIS so if you have any comments please contact us.

A full report on the development and design of APIS is available on request:
W.J. Bealey , L.J. Sheppard, H. Malcolm, J.N. Cape, A. Davison, L. Carvalho, U. Dragosits, K. Harding, J. Hall, D. Fowler, D. Osborn and M.A. Sutton ­ (2003) Development of The UK Air Pollution Information System (APIS) (52 pp), contract report to the JNCC (No. F90-01-538).