Study Of Air-Pollution Problems Overseas

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29972, 6 November 1962, Page 16

Study Of Air-Pollution Problems Overseas

The threat of a serious airpollution problem developing in Christchurch could be minimised by discouraging the use of motor-vehicles and encouraging travel by public transport—preferably electri-cally-propelled—and providing publicly-owned steam mains for heating buildings. Mr L Wilkinson, of the Dominion Laboratory. Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, said yesterday He has just returned from a tour of Western Europe and North America, visiting many air and water-pollution research laboratories

Electrically-Propelled transport such as trolley-buses or electric railway units was most preferable from the airpollution point of view, because they produced no pollution at all. but if public transport by diesel buses was

encouraged this would be much better than encouraging the proliferation of private cars, said Mr Wilkinson Not only did each diesel bus take the place of many private cars, but the pollution produced by a diesel engine was much less than from a petrol motor of the same power. Mr Wilkinson thought proposed measures to facilitate the flow of private traffic into the centre of the city, such as the provision of motorways and parking buildings. might well be reconsidered in the light of their possible effect in increasing air-pollution In Los Angeles, where airpollution caused by motor vehicles was a serious problem, visibility was cut down.

plants were damaged, and people complained of intense eye-irritations. In addition, there was thought to be a considerable health hazard “The situation is likely to deteriorate here, too, unless we do something to prevent it,” he said. In several countries, steam from coal - fired electricity stations was put into mains to heat blocks of flats and office buildings The chimneys of the power-stations were high, and precautions against air-pollution quite stringent, so the amount of pollution reaching groundlevel was negligible. Mr Wilkinson did not advocate coal-fired power-stations, but he thought the amount of pol. lution would be cut considerably if neighbourhood buildings drew their heating from a single efficient boiler-house complex with high chimneys rather than each from its own firing arrangements. A new housing-estate might similarly be serviced by steam from a centrally-Dlaced station. Mr Wilkinson thought Christchurch could well follow the example of Pittsburgh and other American and British cities and ban the use of anything but smokeless fuel In open grates Residents of these cities said there had been a considerable change for the better since the regulations were brought in, he said.

Large sums were being spent on both air and waterpollution research in all the countries he visited, said Mr Wilkinson Two main prob* lems in water-pollution were foaming in rivers and other inland waters because of detergent wastes, and harm caused to fresh-water life by insecticide residues One of the main reasons why detergents had not so far become a similarly pressing problem in New Zealand, Mr Wilkinson thought, were the import controls which limited their use Little work had been done on the effect of insecticide residues on waters in this country.