I've had a burning throat and sore eyes - what about you? harringaypollution@gmail.com

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Permalink Reply by Alice B on March 19, 2026 at 20:38

You can also share your story with Zena and Anna who have been good in championing this issue

zena.brabazon@haringey.gov.uk

Anna.Abela@haringey.gov.uk

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Permalink Reply by Anna Abela on Sunday

Dear residents,

In recent months, we have been contacted by a number of Harringay ward residents who are concerned about emissions from restaurants on Green Lanes, which often use wood and charcoal-based ovens.

We want to reassure you that we have been following up on this issue, and on March 18, we had a very positive and helpful meeting to discuss a way forward. The meeting was chaired by Cllr Ibrahim Ali, Haringey Council's new Cabinet Member for Climate Action & Environment, and attended by key officers; the Director of Public Health, the Head of  Regulatory Services and senior officers from the Noise and Nuisance Team, Environmental Health and Trading Standards.

Officers told us that they have conducted recent inspections of the restaurants and have found them all to be compliant with the legal requirements on oven and air filtration maintenance. However, they also understand the wider issues related to emissions and appreciated that the high density of restaurants on Green Lanes could be contributing to a cumulative impact on air quality on Harringay Ladder roads. We all agreed that this demanded further investigation, and Cllr Ibrahim Ali was clear that we needed a multidisciplinary approach to tackling the issue and problem solving.

To do this we have agreed to a two-pronged approach to address the issue: 

1. We want to work with the businesses, which are a unique part of our Borough's cultural fabric. We have therefore agreed that the best approach is to launch a business engagement campaign in late spring or early summer 2026 to inform Green Lanes restaurants about the concerns residents have shared with us. The aim is to encourage them to introduce additional mitigation measures to reduce emissions, working with council officers including Public Health. Haringey Council's Director of Public Health will be involved in advising on these mitigation measures. We know that many local businesses want to make a positive contribution to their communities and will respond positively to this type of engagement. 
2. In parallel, the Council will develop an evidence base of the issues raised to help support compliance requirements. This evidence base will be built by scheduling site visits to Green Lanes during peak hours (18:00-20:00), seeking specialist legal advice, and exploring additional emissions measurement techniques.

To support this evidence gathering, residents should use the Council's Nuisance Reporting Portal to report specific incidents of high emissions. Complaints sent through other channels are not always received and logged by the Nuisance team, which hampers their ability to form a clear understanding of the time and extent of the issues.

We intend to track our progress by convening a meeting in this format every two months until the situation has improved. We would like to thank the residents who brought this matter to our attention and acknowledge the leadership of those Green Lanes businesses that already have sophisticated emissions-mitigation measures in place.

Best regards, 

Cllr Anna Abela & Cllr Zena Brabazon

Labour councillors for Harringay ward

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