View report page

The 3 smoke control areas made by the Council are subject
to the new grant arrangements and a note of the circumstances
whichhavenecessitated changes in smoke control administration
is given.
The earlier smoke control areas, following the recommendations
of the Beaver report, were based on the concept that
bituminous coal would be replaced by gas coke. To do this it
was only necessary to replace ordinary stool bottom grates by
improved open fires. Technological changes in the gas industry
— the use of cheap gas from oil plants, methane from the Sahara,
and now natural gas from the North Sea — have made gas production
from coal uneconomic so that coke, the by-product from this
process, has become a declining commodity.
A review by the Minister of Power on the availability of
smokeless fuels showed that it was no longer possible everywhere
to rely on supplies of gas coke which hitherto had been the
processed fuel used to replace raw coal in smoke control areas.
Consequently, where little open fire gas coke was available
for new smoke control areas it would be necessary to ensure
that only appliances capable of using other available smokeless
solid fuels, or gas, electricity or oil, were installed. Recent
price trends and the development of new appliances had resulted
in these fuels becoming increasingly competitive in running
costs with solid fuel fires. In the light of this new thinking the
Ministerconsidered that the installation of openable stoves, under
floor draught fires, or gas, electric storage or oil heaters should
now be regarded by_Local Authorities as reasonably necessary
works, and that approved expenditure should rank for grant.
The effect of this new directive was to increase the cost
householder, of course, also had to pay more, but he obtained a
much better buy in the increased heating value that the more
expensive appliances provided. Fortunately these changes were
brought about by administrative action and without recourse
to further legislative action.
Smoke control was made even more expensive a little later
when the Clean Air Act was amended by Section 95 of the
Housing Act, 1964. The definition of a new dwelling was changed
from "one which was erected prior to 5th July, 1956" to "one
which was erected before 16th August, 1964". This added eight
years of new building as potentially eligible for grant. The model
byelaws in this connection where adopted by Local Authorities
reduced some of this expenditure. A further amendment was made
75