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ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION
The three stations set up for the measurement of smoke and sulphur dioxide
in the atmosphere by the volumetric method, continued to function throughout
the year. In addition to these stations, two deposit gauges were set up on
1st September, 1956, one at the Metropolitan Water Board Works, Kew Bridge,
Brentford, and the other at Chiswick House Grounds.
Monthly reports of recordings and other particulars were submitted to the
Fuel Research Station of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research
for comparison with the rest of the country, and the Officers of the Fuel Research
Station were consulted at any time when special problems occurred concerning
the readings of results or breakdown of equipment. Bulletins from the
Department of Scientific and Industrial Research were received regularly and
studied in the Public Health Department so that results could be compared with
those in other areas,
A brief summary of the year's recordings is to be found in Table XII at the
end of the book, and in Graph C which has been prepared from these figures,
but as the results obtained from the deposit gauges covered only four months of
the year in question, no useful comparison can yet be made, and so the figures
are not shown. As will be seen, for most of the year the Chiswick results both
for smoke and sulphur dioxide pollution remain slightly higher than those for
Brentford. The results obtained from the third station in the Borough, which
was set up at Chiswick in August, 1955, at second floor level in the Council
buildings do not indicate any great difference from those obtained from the
original Chiswick station in the Public Health Department's laboratory, and so
far, it has not been possible to explain the higher figures obtained at Chiswick.
The figures all over the Borough show some slight improvement for 1956.
It is noteworthy that on 5th January, 1956 when thick fog obscured the
sky all day, the highest figure yet recorded in the Borough was obtained for
smoke in Chiswick, although that in Brentford (where the previous highest figure
was obtained on 20th January, 1955), was considerably lower. These figures
were obtained during a period of smog', (smoke and fog), when two-hourly readings
were being taken following a request received from the Fuel Research Station
at Greenwich,
Graph 'D' shows the monthly rise and fall in the pollution figures for
Brentford and Chiswick, also Leeds, Central London, and Lerwick. These latter
places have been chosen in order to illustrate the varying amounts of pollution
from a virtually smokeless atmosphere, i.e. Lerwick to an industrial area, i.e.
Leeds.
During the year, 55 visits or observations were made in connection with
cases in which it was alleged that atmospheric pollution was taking place. Work
was carried out where necessary, and advice on stoking methods given occasionally.
New legislation to abate atmospheric pollution received the Royal Assent
as the Clean Air Act, 1956, certain provisions of which were due to come into
operation on the last day of the year.
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