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12
ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION
Immediately after the war the Corporation of the City considered the problem of atmospheric
pollution, and on the recommendation of the Public Health Committee, included in their Various
Powers Bill of 1946 clauses empowering them to declare smokeless zones in the City and to
make bye-laws requiring, "in the case of new buildings and in the case of substantial alterations
in the arrangements for heating in any existing building, the provision, to the satisfaction of the
Corporation, of such arrangements for heating as are calculated to prevent or reduce to a
minimum the emission of visible smoke".
There was considerable opposition to the "smokeless zone clause" and it was withdrawn.
The "prior approval" clause was not opposed and was included in the City of London (Various
Powers) Act, 1946, but it was never found possible to frame bye-laws under the clause which
the Ministry of Health would approve.
We were, therefore, left with no more than the old powers, which in effect enabled us to
deal only with gross nuisances from individual sources of smoke when they had occurred, and did
not provide for any general preventive action.
In 1953, following the disastrous "smog" incident in December, 1952, The Public Health
Committee called for a report by your officers, on which, encouraged by the success of the City
of Manchester in establishing a smokeless zone in the centre of that city, they decided to ask
the Corporation to include again a smokeless zone clause in their next Various Powers Bill. To
this the Corporation agreed, and a clause was included in the Bill then in course of preparation.
It was decided to seek power to declare the whole of the City to be a smokeless zone.
The experience of December, 1952, has created such widespread alarm and so much
publicity has been given to the dangers of atmospheric pollution, that it appears likely that your
smokeless zone clause will have a very different reception to the similar clause in your 1946
Bill, and there is every reason to hope that it will receive the approval of both Houses of
Parliament.
The measurement of atmospheric pollution at your two observations stations in Golden
Lane and Finsbury Circus, has been continued throughout the year and the results are given
below. They show no significant improvement.
TABLE 1.—Results obtained in 1953 of the monthly observations of rainfall and solid deposited
matter ; the monthly observations of sulpher dioxide by the lead peroxide method ; and the daily
observations of the concentration of smoke and sulpher dioxide by the volumetric method.

MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS
Your Medical Officer carries out the medical examination of all new entrants to the staff
of the Corporation; of those who appear to be medically unfit to continue in employment and
of those who have had prolonged or repeated absence on account of illness.
In connection with the two last mentioned categories, it is frequently necessary to correspond
with medical and surgical specialists on the staff of hospitals and with general medical
practitioners, and I have pleasure in recording that I have always received from them the greatest
assistance and courtesy.
The total number of medical examinations during the year was 213.