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The air in three cities in Northern Ireland has been rated as dangerous to breathe by World Health Organisation standards.

But surprisingly, people in Belfast aren't facing the biggest problem.

Instead it was Armagh city that fared worst in the list of the most polluted cities in the UK when it comes to our air.

The Green Party NI has called for urgent action on air quality after the results from the UN and WHO survey were revealed.

A total of 44 out of 51 towns and cities across the UK were above the suggested safe level for fine sooty particles that have been linked to both heart disease and premature death.

Smaller than 2.5 microns, exposure to the particles - which are known as PM2.5s - should not exceed 10 micrograms per cubic metre of air according to WHO.

This is the lowest at which WHO bosses have decided that total, cardiopulmonary and lung cancer mortality have been shown to increase with more than 95% confidence in response to long-term exposure to PM2.5.

(Image: Getty)

In Armagh city their tests found 14mcg of the harmful particles per cubic metre of air - almost as bad as London - while in Belfast it was 12mcg.

The air in Derry was better with 11 mcg per cubic metre of air. But worryingly, all three cities surpassed the recommended WHO limit.

Green Party NI representative Georgina Milne - a research scientist - said she was worried but not surprised by the news.

"Indeed, there are four air quality management areas in Belfast declared for breaches of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) and Particulate Matter (PM)," she explained.

"One of these areas is on the busy Newtownards Road, in my East Belfast constituency.

"Indeed, many residents have spoken about the poor air quality."

(Image: Ben Birchall/Glasgow 2014 Ltd via Getty Images)

Cllr Milne said transport emissions are a huge issue right across Belfast and it is time to move towards more sustainable transport solutions.

"The human and financial cost of doing nothing is huge - more than 500 deaths in Northern Ireland per year are attributed to air pollution.

"This represents more deaths per year than road traffic collisions and passive smoking combined," she added.

"Deaths from air pollution-related disease cost the NHS over £20bn per year - that's nearly 1/5th of the overall budget.

"We need the traditional parties to come together, to form an Executive and deliver a budget so that these life and death issues can be tackled."

UK cities with the worst air quality

Glasgow - 16

Scunthorpe - 16

Eastbourne - 15

Leeds - 15

London - 15

Salford - 15

Southampton - 15

Armagh - 14

Birmingham - 14

Cardiff - 14

Chepstow - 14

Gibraltar - 14

Oxford - 14

Port Talbot - 14

Portsmouth - 14

Stanford-le-Hope - 14

Stoke-on-Trent - 14

Thurrock - 14

Warrington - 14

Bristol - 13

Leamington Spa - 13

Manchester - 13

Newport - 13

Norwich - 13

Wigan - 13

Belfast - 12

Carlisle - 12

Hull - 12

Liverpool - 12

Nottingham - 12

Plymouth - 12

Prestonpans - 12

Swansea - 12

York - 12

Birkenhead - 11

Brighton - 11

Londonderry - 11

Middlesbrough - 11

Saltash - 11

Southend-on-Sea - 11

Chesterfield - 10

Newcastle upon Tyne - 10

Reading - 10

Stockton-on-Tees - 10

Wrexham - 10

Aberdeen - 9

Bournemouth - 9

Grangemouth - 9

Sunderland - 9

Edinburgh - 8

Inverness - 6