London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Greenwich 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]
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2.—DEFECTS FOUND.
| Particulars | Number of Defects | No. of prosecutions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Found | Remedied | Referred to H.M. Inspector | ||
| Want of Cleanliness (S.l) | 70 | 70 | – | – |
| Overcrowding (S.2) | – | – | – | – |
| Unreasonable Temperature (S.3) | – | – | – | – |
| Inadequate Ventilation (S.4) | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| Ineffective drainage of floors (S.6) | – | – | – | – |
| Sanitary Conveniences (S.7)— Insufficient | 3 | 3 | – | – |
| Unsuitable or defective | 36 | 36 | – | – |
| Not separate for sexes | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| Other Offences (Not including offences relating to Home Work or offences under the Sections mentioned in the Schedule to the Ministry of Health (Factories & Workshops Transfer of Powers) Order, 1921, and re-enacted in the Third Schedule to the Factories Act, 1937). | 17 | 17 | - | - |
| Total | 128 | 128 | — | — |
SMOKE ABATEMENT.
Under the provisions of the Public Health (London) Act,
1936, and the Public Health (Smoke Abatement) Act, 1926, the
expression "smoke" includes soot, ash, grit and gritty particles;
during the year 118 observations of chimneys have been made.
On several occasions excessive emissions were observed, and
investigations revealed that the emissions were due to the use of
inferior fuel or careless firing.
Nuisances arising from the emission of large quantities of smoke
from chimneys in connection with manufacturing or trade processes
recur when the attention of the stoker is diverted from his work or
when the fuel on a particular grate is varied. It is found that
months may pass without nuisance from a chimney, and then for a
few hours or days a marked increase in the smoke emission is noted.