Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many copies of the "Digest of Environmental Protection and Water Statistics" have been(a) distributed and (b) sold in each year since 1979, and what efforts are made by his Department to ensure copies are placed in public, school and college libraries.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThe latest estimates of the number of copies of the "Digest of Environmental Protection and Water Statistics" distributed and sold since 1978, when the digest was first published, are as follows:
687W
Issue number Year Distributed Sold 1 1978 1,732 1,332 2 1979 1,196 746 3 1980 1,082 682
Issue number Year Distributed Sold 4 1981 818 568 5 1982 863 613 6 1983 879 629 7 1984 843 543 8 1985 1,011 596 9 1986 1,233 833 10 1987 1,096 716 11 1988 1,235 1835 1 Final sales likely to reach 1,000 and a reprint may be required. There are over 250 regular purchasers of the digest, some of which are school and college libraries. The digest is listed in the Department of the Environment's annual list of publications, which is sent to all local authorities, and HMSO's sectional list No. 5, Department of the Environment. It is advertised in Social Trends and steps are being taken to publicise the volume in professional librarian journals.