WHILE travelling into Blackburn from Brownhill, a minibus doing the same journey was just ahead.

When it stopped to pick up passengers it was pumping out black smoke, most decidedly harmful to the health of children and elderly people.

I called in the Environmental Health department to report it and had some difficulty in persuading the official that some action should be taken.

On leaving, he handed me a leaflet entitled 'How To Report Smoky Diesels and Reduce Vehicle Emissions,' jointly published by the Departments of Transport and Environment. Regional addresses and telephone numbers were shown for complainants to contact. The nearest was in Manchester.

This is an excellent folded leaflet which when opened out can be used as a poster. It explains how to report a smoky diesel.

At the bottom is a large blank panel in which should be displayed the name and address and telephone number of the authority concerned.

Because some people have difficulty in writing letters and others may not be able to afford a long phone call, I would like to suggest that Blackburn Council fill in that blank space, publicise the material and generally assist in reporting excessive vehicle emissions.

KEN BUTLER, Haston Lee Avenue, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.