Acid From Heaven

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30480, 30 June 1964, Page 13

Acid From Heaven

(N Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

Everytime it rains in the Midland city of Derby (population 132,000), weak sulphuric acid falls on the town.

The city’s civic society complained in a newsletter issued yesterday that 74 tons of sulphur dioxide gas were belched out over the city every day by power stations. By the absorption of oxygen and water vapour the gas becomes sulphuric acid. Thus all the rain that falls turns into weak sulphuric acid. The society points out that Derby is “particularly unfortunate" in being surrounded by power stations. Air pollution is costing

LONDON, June 29. Britain as much as £2som

a year, it was stated at the European conference on air pollution at Strasbourg. This figure includes direct costs resulting from damage to crops, buildings and clothing, and from loss of efficiency. Another £2sm to £som a year could be added for losses due to imperfect coal combustion which was itself considered one of the chief causes of pollution. Mr Rene Truhaut, professor of toxicology and of industrial hygiene at the Paris Faculty of Science, told the conference that the link between lung cancer and air pollution appeared to have been proven.