Clean Air Act 1956 facts for kids
| Act of Parliament | |
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| Long title | An Act to make provision for abating the pollution of the air. |
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| Citation | 4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. 52 |
| Introduced by | Gerald Nabarro (Commons) |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 5 July 1956 |
| Commencement |
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| Repealed | 17 August 1993 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends |
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| Repeals/revokes |
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| Repealed by | Clean Air Act 1993 |
| Relates to |
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Status: Repealed
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| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the Clean Air Act 1956 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk | |
The Clean Air Act 1956 was an important law passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created mainly to deal with the terrible Great Smog that covered London in 1952. This law aimed to make the air cleaner and healthier for everyone.
The Act introduced several new rules to lower air pollution. A key change was encouraging the use of smokeless fuels. These were especially important in busy "smoke control areas" to cut down on smoke pollution and harmful gases like sulphur dioxide from home fires. The law also helped reduce gases, grit, and dust coming from chimneys and factory smokestacks.
This Act was a big step forward in creating laws to protect our environment. Other laws, like the Clean Air Act 1968, later updated its rules. The entire 1956 Act was eventually replaced by the Clean Air Act 1993.
Contents
Understanding the Clean Air Act
For a long time, London was famous for its thick, foggy air, often called "pea soup fog." As early as 1880, a weather expert named Rollo Russell wrote about how these smoky fogs caused many deaths. He noted they made lung diseases worse or even started them.
Over the centuries, London had many laws to try and clean its air. Examples include the Smoke Abatement Acts of 1853 and 1856. However, even though people knew air pollution was bad for health by the late 1800s, these early efforts did not solve the problem.
The Great Smog of 1952
A major turning point happened in December 1952 when the "Great Smog" covered London. The effects were very serious. It is believed that over 4,000 people died right away. The fog was so thick it stopped trains, cars, and public events. An additional 8,000 people died in the weeks and months that followed. Today, experts believe the total number of deaths was around 12,000.
This event made it clear that pollution was a deadly problem. The Great Smog became a key moment in the modern environmental movement. It showed everyone that strong action was needed to protect public health.
Investigating the Problem
After the Great Smog, the government set up a group called the Committee on Air Pollution. It was led by civil engineer Sir Hugh Beaver. The committee looked into the pollution problem in London. In 1954, they reported on how air pollution harmed people and the economy. They said that clean air was as important then as clean water had been many years before.
The committee suggested replacing regular coal used in homes with coke. They also recommended using more "smokeless" fuels like electricity and gas. However, there was a challenge. The industries that made these smokeless fuels, such as coke works and power stations, still burned coal. This meant pollution was often just moved from homes to the areas where these fuels were produced.
Debates on Electricity and Pollution
The electricity industry used a lot of coal and contributed to air pollution. The Beaver committee suggested that new power stations in cities should use special equipment to remove sulfur from their exhaust gases. This process is called flue-gas desulphurisation. They believed it would be practical and affordable.
However, the British Electricity Authority was not convinced. They argued that adding this equipment to all power stations would be very expensive. They felt it would significantly increase the cost of electricity for everyone. This showed that finding solutions to pollution involved difficult choices about costs and benefits.
How the Law Was Made
At first, the government was hesitant to act. They were worried about how new laws might affect the economy. However, some members of Parliament pushed for change. Gerald Nabarro, a Conservative member, introduced a special bill about domestic coal burning. This helped convince the government to support a new law. The Clean Air Act built on earlier attempts to control pollution, especially in London, where air quality had been poor for a long time.
Key Rules of the 1956 Act
The Clean Air Act 1956 brought in several important rules to reduce air pollution.
- It allowed towns and cities to create "smoke control areas." In these areas, only smokeless fuels could be burned.
- By encouraging homes to use cleaner coals, electricity, and gas for heating, the Act greatly reduced smoke pollution and sulphur dioxide from household fires.
- The law also made it illegal to release dark smoke from chimneys.
- New furnaces had to be designed to produce no smoke.
- Local authorities could require taller and more effective chimneys on buildings.
- It also required that the amount of grit and dust released into the air be kept as low as possible.
By controlling what private homes could burn, the Clean Air Act 1956 showed that the government could step in to protect public health. The 1952 smog also led to other laws, like the City of London (Various Powers) Act 1954 and the Clean Air Act 1968.
Lasting Impact and New Laws
Even after the 1956 Act, smog and its health effects continued to be a problem in London. For example, a fog in December 1957 caused between 760 and 1,000 deaths. Another smog event in 1962 led to 750 deaths. This showed that cleaning the air was an ongoing challenge.
The Clean Air Act of 1968
| Clean Air Act 1968 | |
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| Act of Parliament | |
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| Long title | An Act to make further provision for abating the pollution of the air. |
| Citation | 1968 c. 62 |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 25 October 1968 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repealed by | Clean Air Act 1993 |
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Status: Repealed
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The rules of the 1956 Act were made stronger by the Clean Air Act 1968. This new law made it illegal to release dark smoke from any chimney. It also gave the government power to set limits for grit and dust from furnaces. The 1968 Act required new furnaces to have special equipment to trap pollutants. It also set rules for how tall and where chimneys should be placed. This Act further helped create smoke control areas and manage what fuels could be used in them.
The Clean Air Act of 1993
Both the 1956 and 1968 Clean Air Acts were eventually replaced. The Clean Air Act 1993 brought together and updated all these rules. This new law covered many aspects of air quality. It included rules about dark smoke, grit, dust, and fumes. It also detailed how to manage smoke control areas. The 1993 Act also addressed other types of air pollution and how to share information about air quality.
See also
- Clean Air Act (disambiguation)
- Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation (FIDO) – an invention to clear fog from airfields
 | Valerie Thomas |
 | Frederick McKinley Jones |
 | George Edward Alcorn Jr. |
 | Thomas Mensah |
