Development of an Air Quality Management Strategy for a Mining Town in Western Australia
Development of air quality management plan (AQM) generally involves assessment of existing air quality situation, evaluation of air emission scenarios, setting the priorities for emission control and investigating the cost-effective solutions for air pollutants control. But there are no well-defined criteria for the formulation of the AQM plan applicable in a variety of situations. This study aims to establish the air quality management strategy for two mining towns (with different population sizes) in Western Australia. The results indicate that a generic AQM conceptual model cannot be applied for both mining towns. The AQM is dependent on a number of factors like public perception of air quality, level of awareness about air quality issues, socio-economic condition, scientific understanding of the air shed and knowledge about non-traditional air quality sources. Evaluation of AQM plans also poses a challenge in terms of setting robust indicators of air quality improvement and lack of co-ordination in cases where Whole-of-Government approach is needed during implementation phase.