French regulations on the preservation of air quality are mainly defined by the French law on "Air Quality and the Rational Use of Energy" (LAURE) dated 30 September 1996, normally referred to as the "air quality law", and by its various implementing orders. This law, the main aim of which is to "implement the recognised right of each person to breathe air that is not harmful to their health", has a three-fold objective:

• Monitoring and information,
• Development of forward planning tools,
• Setting up of technical measures, fiscal and financial provisions, controls and penalties.

Monitoring and information
The French law dated 30 December 1996 stipulates the gradual phasing in of a system for monitoring air quality that is to be extended to cover the whole country on 1 January 2000. This monitoring activity is delegated to approved bodies that, in particular, associate the State, regional authorities, industrials contributing to pollutant emissions, consumer or environmental protection associations and representatives from the health sector. As such, Atmo Auvergne is known as the Association Agréée de Surveillance de la Qualité de l'Air (AASQA -Approved Air Quality Monitoring Association) in the Auvergne region.

The list of substances to be monitored is determined by French order, which also sets various objectives for air quality, limit values and alert thresholds with respect to concentration levels in ambient air. This terminology is explained in article 3 of said French law.

Apart from their monitoring activities, the approved bodies contribute to the application of "the recognised right of every person in the region to be able to access information on air quality" (article 4). Therefore, one of Atmo Auvergne's main concerns is the large-scale, multi-public circulation of study and measurement results.

In the event that alert thresholds are exceeded, or risk being exceeded, regional or departmental Prefects order information actions targeting the exposed population and emergency measures aiming to bring pollution levels back down below these limit values (restricted traffic circulation, reduction of emissions by fixed and mobile sources, and so on). To meet these requirements, Prefectural orders specify the organisation of stepwise measures and actions in the event of an urban pollution peak in the four Auvergne departments.

Forward planning tools
The air quality law sets up specific forward planning tools for local management of air pollution issues:

• The Regional Plan for Air Quality (PRQA) assesses air pollution and sets the directions for reaching air quality objectives over the whole region. This document, initially drawn up under the responsibility of the regional Prefect together with a regional committee, is reviewed at least on a five-yearly basis. The Conseil Régional (Regional Council) has been responsible for this assessment since 2004.
• By strengthening current preventive measures, the Atmospheric Protection Plan (PPA) aims to bring air pollutant concentrations back below limit values in towns with a population of more than 250,000 and in areas where these limit values are likely to be exceeded. This plan is drawn up under the responsibility of departmental Prefects.
• The Urban Traffic Planning (PDU) is a tool for defining and coordinating traffic policies within the built-up area of towns with a population or more than 100,000. The main objective is to modify the road system in order to reduce the use of cars by getting more people to use non-polluting public transport systems. The PDU for Clermont-Ferrand was approved on 30 January 2001 by the Syndicat Mixte des Transports en Commun de l'agglomération clermontoise (SMTC - Joint Public Transport Union for the Clermont-Ferrand metropolitan area), the local authority responsible for the organisation of public transport.

Technical measures, fiscal and financial provisions, controls and penalties
Restrictive technical measures have been set by order to "reduce energy consumption and cut down sources emitting polluting substances" (fridge and freezer energy consumption, polluting emission by petrol stations, heat efficiency in buildings, the use of wood in buildings, etc.).

Various tax incentives are provided by law to promote the development of "clean vehicles" that produce less pollution. These may operate on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), on Natural Gas for Vehicles (NGV) or on electricity.

The law also specifies both the terms and conditions under which authorised agents can search for and record violations of these legal provisions as well as the penalties incurred.