§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what evidence he has of the effects of acid rain in the Nottingham area.
§ Mrs. Virginia Bottomley[holding answer 28 November 1988]: The Department is funding three research projects in the Nottingham area. One at Loughborough university of technology is looking at the impact of acid deposition on the vegetation and freshwater biota of three catchments on Beacon hill in the Charnwood forest. A second project at the university of Nottingham school of agriculture is looking at the effects of air pollution, including acid deposition, on agricultural crops. Finally the Department's building research establishment is currently investigating the effects of acid deposition in the stone work of Bolsover castle. Results from these projects have been and will continue to be published in scientific and technical journals.