Almost 1,500 people in the West Midlands are dying from pollution and Birmingham is going to miss targets to improving air quality, it has emerged.
The Department for the Environment has revealed it now expects air pollution in Birmingham, the and to exceed official limits set by the until after 2030.
Previously, it had predicted that the target would be met by 2020.
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Even the earlier prediction would have meant breaching EU regulations, which state air pollution should be under control by 2015.
Separate figures from Public Health England show that air pollution is estimated to cause 1,460 excess deaths a year in Birmingham and the surrounding area.
This includes 520 deaths in Birmingham, 168 in Coventry, 173 in , 198 in Sandwell, 107 in Solihull, 155 in Walsall and 139 in Wolverhampton.
The pollution figures refer to levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air. This is a gas released when fuels are burned, including petrol or diesel in a car engine, and it can affect the way lungs work over long periods of time.
The European Union's Air Quality Directive states that, on average over the course of a year, there should be no more than 40 micrograms – a millionth of a gram – of nitrogen dioxide per cubic metre of air.
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The EU target states that there should never be more than 200 micrograms of the gas per cubic metre of air, even in the worst conditions.
EU member states such as the 海角视频 were expected to meet this target by 2015 but in 2011 the Department for the Environment published a report warning that it could not do so in the West Midlands until 2020.
Now it has published a new report saying air quality in what it calls the West Midlands Urban Area will not meet the target until "after 2030".
The report states: "This is largely due to the failure of the European vehicle emission standards for diesel cars to deliver the expected emission reductions."
Public Health England, a Department of Health agency, has published estimated figures for deaths caused by air pollution in each local authority, for the first time.
Barry Gardiner, Labour's Shadow Environment Minister, said: "The Government is failing to meet even its own inadequate air pollution targets."
Ministers announced they were distributing an extra £1 million to local councils to help them deal with pollution.
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Environment Minister Dan Rogerson said: "Air quality has improved significantly in recent decades and local authorities play a vital role - this funding will allow them to continue their good work."
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