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 1952
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]
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44
The following tables and graphs indicate the pollution sustained
during the year and emphasise the effect of the increase in
atmospheric pollution which occurred at the beginning of December
at the time of the "smoke-fog" and which occasioned such a
devastating effect on life and property.
Observations concerning rainfall, deposited matter and sulphur
dioxide are given in Table I. The deposited matter, expressed in
tons per square mile, is divided into total insoluble and total soluble
deposit. The sulphur dioxide figures give a rate of sulphation as
measured by the lead-peroxide instrument and are expressed in
milligrammes of SO3 per day per 100 cm2.
TABLE I.—Rainfall, Monthly Deposit in Tons per Square Mile and Sulphur Dioxide by the Lead-Peroxide Method.
| Month & Year | Rainfall | Insoluble Deposit | Soluble Deposit | Total Solids | SOs mg./day/1OO cm2 of Batch A Lead Peroxide |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mm. | colspan="3"h>tons per square mile | ||||
| October 1951 | 26 | 42.36 | 12.30 | 54.66 | 2.82 |
| November „ | 104 | 27.69 | 11.26 | 38.95 | 2.37 |
| December „ | 56 | 35.53 | 12.89 | 48.42 | 1.49 |
| January 1952 | 38 | 32.96 | 24.50 | 57.45 | 2.67 |
| February „ | 21 | 36.19 | 11.35 | 47.54 | 3.95 |
| March „ | 61 | 23.68 | 9.04 | 32.72 | 1.31 |
| April „ | 26 | 31.04 | 8.43 | 39.47 | 1.91 |
| May „ | 19 | 27.72 | 7.74 | 35.46 | 1.31 |
| June „ | 38 | 28.21 | 9.39 | 37.60 | 0.91 |
| July „ | 7 | 14.49 | 3.45 | 17.94 | * |
| August „ | 45 | 26.86 | 6.64 | 33.50 | 1.91 |
| September „ | * | * | * | * | 1.22 |
| October „ | 68 | 35.30 | 11.24 | 46.54 | 2.20 |
| November „ | 88 | 61.62 | 16.32 | 77.94 | * |
| December „ | 66 | 41.83 | 16.18 | 58.01 | 3.02† |
| January 1953 | 10 | 19.43 | 5.21 | 24.64 | 2.08‡ |
| February „ | 40 | 40.74 | 9.92 | 50.66 | 1.88 |
* No figures available.
†Lead-peroxide cylinder exposed for 34 days, 28th November to 1st January.
‡Lead-peroxide cylinder exposed for 28 days, 1st January to 29th January.