§ Colonel Clarkeasked the Minister of Fuel and Power the estimated cost of properly replacing and spreading the top-soil after opencast working; and whether this cost is added to the charge for opencast coal.
§ Mr. ShinwellContractors are required to take the restoration of the surface into account in submitting their tenders for the working of opencast sites but as they do not customarily quote separately for this item it is not possible to arrive at the estimated cost. As regards the second part of the Question the selling price of opencast coal is related to that of deep mined coal of comparable quality and not to cost of production.