§ Mr. Hoosonasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what full-scale surveys of Great Britain's ground water resources there have been, particularly in Wales and the Midlands area; and what were the results.
§ Mr. MacCollThe former Geological Survey of Great Britain investigated ground water conditions over extensive areas of the country, including Wales and the Midlands, and the results of some of these investigations have been published. Additional information on ground-water conditions is included in the published reports of the hydrological surveys, carried out by the Department, of many river basins of England and Wales, including those of the Severn and the Wye. More detailed surveys of water resources, including groundwater, are now being undertaken by river authorities, but the results of these are unlikely to be available for some time. However, the Water Resources Board are themselves undertaking surveys of areas which present special problems, and their published report on water supplies in the South East England points to the possibility of increased exploitation of groundwater sources and has led to pilot studies into the possibilities of developing such sources in the Thames and Great Ouse areas.