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96
RADIATION HAZARDS
The question of the Corporation arranging for tests for
ionizing radiations was raised by Members of the Council. The
Water Engineer had samples of water examined and as would be
expected, with deep chalk well water, negligible radioactivity
was found.
The Civil Defence Officer reported to me on the assessment
of general background radiation in Croydon, as this is part of
routine Civil Defence training. The results were consistently of
the amounts quoted by official sources as the average normal
figure for the country as a whole.
The Corporation's Public Analyst in reply to my enquiries
confirmed that testing of foodstuffs is exacting and expensive.
Considerable outlay on equipment would be necessary before he
could undertake this work and in common with all Public Analysts,
he would need assurance that it will be a routine obligation of
local authorities before he embarked upon the necessary capital
expenditure. Since food supplies are very largely of national
distribution and radioactive contamination localised to the area
of one food and drugs authority is unlikely, it was clearly impossible
to give the Public Analyst any such assurance.
I did not know whether there were industrial or other sources
of radioactive material in the borough, which might by misuse or
mishap cause dangers to the general public. There was no duty to
register with or notify the local authority. I had, however, no
reason to believe that this danger existed in Croydon. In short,
the position regarding the peacetime uses of radioactive material
and possible radiation hazards was confusing but not alarming,
and it was possible to await further Ministerial Circulars with
equanimity.