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
Richmond upon Thames 1969
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Richmond]
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the bacterial contamination and keeping quality of fresh creams. Investigations regard'
ing the unsatisfactory results were carried out and improved results were obtained.
(7) The Liquid Egg (Pasteurisation) Regulations, 1963.
There are no pasteurisation plants in the district. Nine samples of liquid egg were
taken from bakehouses and submitted for bacteriological examination only and not for
the Alpha-Amylase test. The bacteriological reports stated that organisms of the food
poisoning group were not isolated in any of the samples.
3. ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION
The following Smoke Control Orders became operative during the year:
| Acreage. | Number of Dwellings. | Number of other Premises. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barnes No. 10 Order | 224 | 1,574 | 76 |
| Richmond No. 10 Order | 200 | 639 | 14 |
| Twickenham No. 8 Order | 203 | 2,535 | 191 |
There are now 12,264 acres including 57,141 premises subject to Smoke Control Orders. During the year, the following Order was made, which will become operative on 1st October, 1970.
| Acreage. | Number of Dwellings. | Number of other Premises. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twickenham No. 9 Order | 653 | 4,642 | 418 |
The assurances given in the past by the Gas Boards that adequate supplies of gas
coke would be available for smoke control areas made before late 1966 were not being
honoured and at the end of the year most distributors were no longer stocking this fuel.
No doubt there was a small tonnage sold but this was not readily available to the
householder. This is understandable for less and less gas in the area is produced from
coal and very soon there will be none produced from this raw material.
The decreasing production of gas coke is being matched by increased manufacturing
capacity for the supply of Homefire, Coalite, Rexco and Sunbrite, and there would
have been ample supplies but for certain difficulties. Unfortunately, these difficulties
resulted in a very tight supply situation for mainly open fire fuels. Although there was
a plentiful supply of Sunbrite, which is a hard coke, there was a certain amount of
speculation in the press about the shortage of the other authorised solid fuels but
fortunately the situation was eased as a result of the milder weather before Christmas.
During this period only two members of the public complained to the department about
difficulties in getting fuel and even so they were not long without a supply.
Section 9 of the Clean Air Act 1956 came into force on 1st April 1969 and prohibits
any person from acquiring unauthorised fuel for use in a building or fireplace in
a Smoke Control Area. This section also prohibits the sale by retail delivery of
unauthorised solid fuel in an area. The section does not however prevent a retailer
from making a sale across the counter and some retailers in the centre of smoke control
areas, and some distance from districts where coal can be legally burnt, were found to
be selling bags of coal. The attention of these retailers was drawn to the provisions of
the section and they were asked, in view of the many hundreds of thousands of pounds
expended by the community to reduce atmospheric pollution, if they would, as a public
spirited gesture, stop such sales. In all instances the retailers were co-operative enough
to discontinue selling bituminous coal.
Householders continue to have freedom of choice, for grant purposes, in the selection
of replacement appliances. During the year, for the first time since 1964, grants
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