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
City of Westminster 1959
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Westminster, City of]
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46
Smoke.
Average readings from apparatus sited at Monck Street, S.W.l.
By means of this apparatus a measured volume of air is drawn through a filter paper which removes solid matter from it. The stain thereby produced is compared with a standard, from which the amount of pollution is calculated.
| Parts per 100 c.m. Average value | |
|---|---|
| January | 41 |
| February | 34 |
| March | 17 |
| April | 12 |
| May | 7 |
| June | 4 |
| July | 4 |
| August | 5 |
| September | 8 |
| October | 15 |
| November | 29 |
| December | 19 |
Smoke Abatement—Results op Observations and Action Taken
| 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Complaints received | 121 | 87 | 41 | 67 | 58 |
| Observations taken | 2,413 | 2,634 | 1,603 | 625 | 497 |
| Notices issued— | |||||
| Preliminary | 7 | 23 | 6 | — | 1 |
| Statutory | — | — | — | — | 1 |
Clean Air Act, 1956
In the Report of the Government Committee on Air Pollution, issued
in 1953, the City of Westminster and adjoining Boroughs were included
in the list of "black areas," that is, areas where pollution is particularly
bad. In January, 1959, the Minister of Housing and Local Government
issued a Circular drawing attention to the fact that about half the smoke
in the atmosphere comes from domestic fireplaces burning coal. The
Minister expressed the hope that, although an encouraging start had been
made by local authorities in using their powers to make smoke control