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The first ever National Clean Air Day is set to get underway tomorrow, 15 June.
Commuters and school children are being urged to leave the car at home and use other, more environmentally friendly modes of transport.
Co-ordinated by environmental change charity, Global Action Plan, the day will see local schools, hospitals and communities across the country run events and raise awareness about air quality and health impacts.
The event comes after an air pollution strategy set out by the government just over a month ago was dismissed as “woefully inadequate” by some observers.
According to a study by the Royal Colleges of Physicians and of Paediatrics and Child Health, air pollution in the UK has been linked to around 40,000 early deaths a year.