324 CONFERENCE ON NATURAL BEAUTY 



and Mineral Industries makes extensive cover plantings each year; 

 some of the disturbed areas are being reclaimed and developed for 

 residential, commercial, and industrial purposes; and the recently 

 enacted Appalachian development program will reclaim some of the 

 disturbed area. 



We are now in the process of updating the maps as an aid to de- 

 termining the present status of the problem and the scheduling of 

 new plantings. 



3. Further research is needed and it is being contracted for by 

 P.P. & L. covering growth and survival of various tree species. 



New areas of our cooperative research include determining plant 

 material which, in addition to being able to survive in this unique 

 environment, can be planted by mechanical processes. Experi- 

 ments with some grasses have not been successful to date. Research 

 is also being conducted on materials such as crown vetch which would 

 become a catalytic agent for other plant material by supplying nitro- 

 gen-fixing bacteria. 



This research work has cost P.P. & L. $75,000 to date. We feel 

 the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station of the U.S. Department 

 of Agriculture is doing an outstanding job in working on the specific 

 problems relating to the anthracite area. We recommend the de- 

 partment be utilized in other problem areas. 



In conclusion, our experience indicates that, wherever possible, 

 there is real merit in having local people made a part of local recla- 

 mation and beautification projects. 



Mr. COLLINS. In considering land reclamation and restora- 

 tion in our two countries it is necessary to appreciate the contrasting 

 conditions. Although the land area of the United States of America 

 is nearly 40 times that of the United Kingdom, the population is only 

 3J/2 times greater. Thus, the density of population in the United 

 Kingdom is over 10 times that of the United States of America. 

 Whilst, therefore, the problems of land conservation are similar, 

 the scale is different. 



It is largely this difference in scale which led to the passing of our 

 first Town and Country Planning Act in 1947. Broadly speaking, 

 the effect of this and subsequent acts is that the permission of the 

 local planning authority is required for any new development in- 

 volving the use of land. Because planning authorities can impose 

 conditions on land use, it is possible to obtain some degree of control 

 over both the siting and the development of new buildings and in- 



