§ 92. Mr. Nabarroasked the Minister of Fuel and Power how much opencast coal has been marketed in each year since the National Coal Board took control of such operations; what part of such opencast coal was derived from Grade A agricultural land; and how many acres of such land were thereby lost and for what periods.
§ Mr. Geoffrey LloydThe following table shows the tonnage of opencast coal marketed, the percentage obtained from Class I agricultural land and the acreage32W of Class I land requisitioned between 1st April, 1952, and 30th March, 1955:
(a) (b) Opencast coal marketed Percentage of (a) obtained from Class I land(*) Acreage of Class I land requisitioned for opencast production ('000 tons) 1952 (April-December) 6,498 0.2 13 1953 13,471 0.2 171 1954 10,616 1.6 6 1955 (January-March) 2,048 1.8 59 32,633 0.9 249 * Land classified as Class I in the Land Utilisation Survey of Great Britain. Thirteen acres of Class I land which were requisitioned for opencast operations in 1952 were handed over for agricultural treatment after 11½ months. The other Class I land requisitioned since 1st April, 1952, is still occupied by the National Coal Board.