‘Coal a national asset'

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32637, 19 June 1971, Page 15

‘Coal a national asset '

The Clean Air Society firmly believed that coal was a great national asset and must come into its own for its proper use as a fuel chemical, the president of the society (Mr P. V. Neary) said at the annual meeting of the society.

“In September, 1970, the “National Business Review’ reported that the Coal Research Association was on the verge of completing a project that would enable the manufacture of a smokeless fuel from coal slack," said Mr Neary. “We are concerned that with the drop in coal sales on that expected before it was decided to make the New Plymouth power station a gas-oil-fired station and the incursion of natural gas in

the North Island fuel market, that there should be a drop in income to the Coal Research Association,” he said.

Fuel engineers and scientists should not be compelled to press for heavier sales of domestic coals to raise funds for research, as this would lead- to traditional heavy domestic coal-using areas such as Christchurch lagging behind the North Island in domestic smoke reduction, he said.

Twelve persons attended the meeting. It was decided at the meeting that because the New Zealand society was no longer so parochially concerned with Christchurch that the Christchurch branch be reconstituted. The Christchurch branch was wound up two years ago because its work was substantially that of the national body.

Officers of the New Zealand society elected were:— President, Mr P. V. Neary; vice-president, Mrs E. M. Aitken; secretary, Mr D. King; treasurer, Mrs J. Innes; council, Messrs I. Densem, W. Gates, J. Gleason, K. Hyde, J. Forster, J. Crichton, Dr H. Daellenbach, and Mrs J. McCallum.

Officers for the Christchurch branch are the same as for the New Zealand body except for the secretary, who is Mrs J. Holm.