It is a very sad thing that during the reign of our greenest government ever (what is the symbol for tongue-in-cheek, and eyes crossed with exasperation?) we see, this week, an announcement of the impending demise of the UK’s oldest environmental charity. Even sadder that it coincides with the launch of a film they’ve produced to highlight a serious, but frequently invisible, problem. Environmental Protection UK started in 1898 as the Coal Smoke Abatement Society. By the time I joined it was called the National Society for Clean Air and it changed to its current name a few years ago. It was responsible for the Clean Air Act in 1956, getting rid of those old pea-soupers that used to blanket London - I used to hear terrible tales of them from my parents. It achieved great things, and has also been a valuable reference source, publishing research reports as well as the Pollution Control Handbook, now renamed Essential Environment - old copies make a great doorstop. We don't see those smogs any more, but we still have a serious air pollution problem - some of the worst air pollution in Europe - in London particularly, where we're breaching EU limits (along with a number of other parts of the UK) and asthma is commonplace. I can hike up Ilkley Moor at quite a lick, but walking up my not very steep road in Hackney to the bus stop in the rush hour can make me sound like an ancient steam engine.  Their new film is highlighting this as part of their Healthy Air Campaign, which will fortunately keep going. I wish them every success. You can watch the film on the Healthy Air Campaign website: www.healthyair.org.uk.