London sewerage system

Map of the London sewerage system from 1882.

The London sewerage system is part of the water infrastructure serving London, England. The modern system was developed during the late 19th century, and as London has grown the system has been expanded. It is currently owned and operated by Thames Water and serves almost all of Greater London.

History

The original Abbey Mills pumping station

Interior of the Octagon at Crossness showing its elaborate decorative ironwork, which was heavily influenced by Moorish imagery

During the early 19th century the River Thames was an open sewer, with disastrous consequences for public health in London, including cholera epidemics. These were caused by enterotoxin-producing strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Although the contamination of the water supply was correctly diagnosed by Dr John Snow in 1849 as the method of communication, it was believed that miasma, or smell, was responsible right up to the outbreak of 1866.^[1] Proposals to modernise the sewerage system had been made during 1856, but were neglected due to lack of funds. However, after the Great Stink of 1858, Parliament realised the urgency of the problem and resolved to create a modern sewerage system.

Joseph Bazalgette, a civil engineer and Chief Engineer of the Metropolitan Board of Works, was given responsibility for the work. He designed an extensive underground sewerage system that diverted waste to the Thames Estuary, downstream of the main centre of population. Six main interceptor sewers, totalling almost 160 km (100 miles) in length, were constructed, some incorporating stretches of London's 'lost' rivers. Three of these sewers were north of the river, the southernmost, low-level one being incorporated in the Thames Embankment. The Embankment also allowed new roads, new public gardens, and the Circle line of the London Underground. Victoria Embankment was finally officially opened on 13 July 1870.^[2]^[3]

The intercepting sewers, constructed between 1859 and 1865, were fed by 450 miles (720 km) of main sewers that, in turn, conveyed the contents of some 13,000 miles (21,000 km) of smaller local sewers. Construction of the interceptor system required 318 million bricks, 2.7 million cubic metres of excavated earth and 670,000 cubic metres of concrete.^[4] The innovative use of Portland cement strengthened the tunnels, which were in good order 150 years later.^[5]

Gravity allows the sewage to flow eastwards, but in places such as Chelsea, Deptford and Abbey Mills, pumping stations were built to raise the water and provide sufficient flow. Sewers north of the Thames feed into the Northern Outfall Sewer, which feeds into a major treatment works at Beckton. South of the river, the Southern Outfall Sewer extends to a similar facility at Crossness.

During the 20th century, major improvements were made to the sewerage system and to the sewage treatment provision to substantially reduce pollution of the Thames Estuary and the North Sea.

Modern development needs

The new Abbey Mills Pumping Station

The original system was designed to cope with 6.5 mm (1/4") per hour of rainfall within the catchment area, and supported a smaller population than today's. London's growth has put pressure on the capacity of the sewerage system. During storms, for example, high levels of rainfall (in excess of 6 mm per hour) in a short period of time can overwhelm the system. Sewers and treatment works are unable to cope with the large volumes of rainwater entering the system. Rainwater mixes with sewage in combined sewers and excess mixed water is discharged into the Thames. If this does not happen quickly enough, localised flooding occurs (surcharge). Such sanitary sewer overflow can mean streets becoming flooded with a mixture of water and sewage, causing a health risk.

In redeveloping the Isle of Dogs and Royal Docks areas of east London during the late 1980s and early 1990s, the London Docklands Development Corporation invested in major new drainage infrastructure to manage future sewage and surface water run-off from proposed developments. Consulting engineer Sir William Halcrow & Partners designed a system of large diameter tunnels served by new pumping stations. In the Royal Docks, approximately 16 miles (25 km) of foul and surface water drains were built, plus pumping stations at Tidal Basin (designed by Richard Rogers Partnership) and North Woolwich (architect: Nicholas Grimshaw).^[6] The Isle of Dogs drainage network is served by a stormwater pumping station situated in Stewart Street, designed by John Outram Associates.^[7]

Thames Tideway Scheme

Main article: Thames Tideway Scheme

Increasing the carrying capacity of London's sewerage system has been debated for some years. Proposals for the 'Thames Tideway' include a wide diameter storage-and-transfer tunnel (internal diameters of 7.2 m and 9 m have been suggested), 22 miles (35 km) long, underneath the riverbed of the Thames between Hammersmith in the west and Beckton/Crossness in the east,^[8] but as the cost of such a megaproject is likely to be substantial (estimated at £1.7 billion in 2004), investment decisions have been slow in forthcoming. In March 2007 the Mayor of London announced that the project will proceed with completion expected by 2020.^[9]

Because design and construction of such a tunnel will take an estimated 15 years, a shorter-term (and slightly lower cost) interim solution has also been developed. This £1.6 billion scheme (2006 prices) involves two shorter tunnels (one taking storm water from Hammersmith to Battersea for treatment or storage, the other carrying water from Abbey Mills south to the river at Beckton) and improvements to associated treatment facilities.^[10]

Literary or media references

The system plays a large part in English writer Neil Gaiman's 1996 novel Neverwhere.
The system plays a part in Australian writer Michael Robotham's 2005 novel Lost (a.k.a. The Drowning Man).
It featured as one of the Seven Wonders of the Industrial World in the BBC television series of the same name.
Eleanor Updale's Montmorency (beginning with Montmorency: Liar Thief Gentleman?) novels are set against the backdrop of construction of the London sewerage system.
The London sewerage system is also featured in Guitar Hero: Smash Hits as one of the venues.
The London sewerage system plays a large part in English writer Clare Clark's 2005 novel The Great Stink (winner of the Guildford Arts Book Prize).
The construction of the London sewer system is central to the plot of Anne Perry's 2006 novel Dark Assassin, in which the Great Stink is also mentioned.
The title character from Terry Pratchett's Dodger, based on the Artful Dodger from Oliver Twist, spends much of his time in London's sewers alongside notable historical figures including Bazalgette.
The sewer system plays a part in Ben Aaronovitch's 2012 novel Whispers Under Ground.
It is the scene of the pursuit of the villain in Edgar P. Jacobs' 1956 comic book The Yellow "M".

Notes

↑ Cadbury, Deborah (2003). Seven Wonders of the Industrial World. London and New York: Fourth Estate. pp. 165–6, 189–192.
↑ Cadbury 2003, pp. 194-196.
↑ Baker, Margaret (2002). Discovering London Statues and Monuments. Osprey Publishing. p. 125. ISBN 9780747804956.
↑ Goodman, David C. and Chant, Colin (1999) European Cities and Technology (London: Routledge).
↑ Cadbury 2003, p. 183.
↑ Royal Docks, LDDC Completion Booklet, 1998
↑ "Pumping Station" – An 'Architectural Primer', John Outram. Retrieved 2011-09-30.
↑ Brown, Paul (10 April 2004). "£2bn tunnel to carry sewage under Thames". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 June 2009.
↑ "London's new sewer". Metro. UK. 22 March 2007. Retrieved 11 June 2009.
↑ Lee Tunnel, Thames Water. Accessed 2011-07-20.

References

Trench, R. and Hillman, E. (1984) London Under London: A Subterranean Guide (London: John Murray).

External links

Tales of the underworld from The Guardian Wednesday 30 March 2005

Water supply and sanitation in London

Companies	Affinity Water Anglian Water Essex and Suffolk Water Sutton and East Surrey Water Thames Water

Major infrastructure	Supply infrastructure Sewerage system Northern Outfall Sewer Southern Outfall Sewer

Thames Water

History	John Backhouse Joseph Bazalgette Edmund Colthurst Great Stink London sewerage system London water supply Metropolitan Board of Works Metropolitan Water Board Hugh Myddelton William Chadwell Mylne New River Company New River John Snow (physician) 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak William Webster

Major projects	Abingdon Reservoir Thames Tideway Scheme, including Thames Tideway Tunnel and Lee Tunnel Thames Water Desalination Plant Thames Water Ring Main

Categories	Thames Water Reservoirs Predecessor companies

Metropolitan Board of Works

Districts	Fulham (dissolved 1886) Greenwich Hackney (dissolved 1894) Holborn Lee/Plumstead (re-named 1894) Lewisham Limehouse Poplar St Giles St Olave St Saviour's Strand Wandsworth Westminster Whitechapel	Headquarters at Spring Gardens

Incorporated vestries	Original vestries (1855) Battersea Bermondsey Bethnal Green Camberwell Chelsea Clerkenwell Hampstead Islington Kensington Lambeth Mile End Old Town Newington Paddington Rotherhithe St George Hanover Square St George in the East St Luke Middlesex St Martin in the Fields St Marylebone St Pancras Shoreditch Southwark St George the Martyr Westminster St Margaret and St John Westminster St James Woolwich Later vestries Fulham (1886) Hammersmith (1886) Hackney (1894) Plumstead (1894) Stoke Newington (1894)

Undertakings	Metropolitan Buildings Office Metropolitan Commission of Sewers Metropolitan Fire Brigade

Major works	Charing Cross Road Hammersmith Bridge London sewerage system Northumberland Avenue Putney Bridge Southwark Street Shaftesbury Avenue Thames Embankment Waterloo Bridge

Legislation	Royal Commission on the City of London Metropolis Management Act 1855 Local Government Act 1888 London Government Act 1899

People	Francis Fowler Frederick Marrable James McGarel-Hogg John Thwaites Joseph Bazalgette List of Members

History of London

Evolution	Londinium Lundenwic City of London City of Westminster Middlesex County of London Greater London Timeline

Periods	Roman London Anglo-Saxon London Norman and Medieval London Tudor London Stuart London 18th-century London 19th-century London 1900–39 The Blitz 1945–2000 21st century

Events	Peasants' Revolt Black Death Great Plague Great Fire 1854 cholera outbreak Great Stink Great Exhibition 1908 Franco-British Exhibition The Battle of Cable Street Festival of Britain Great Smog Swinging London London Plan 1966 FIFA World Cup Final 7/7 bombings Olympic Games (1908 1948 2012) 2012 Summer Paralympics

Government	Metropolitan Board of Works London County Council Greater London Council Greater London Authority London Assembly Mayor of London London independence

Services	Bow Street Runners Metropolitan Police Service London Ambulance Service London Fire Brigade Port of London Authority London sewerage system London Underground

City of London	City of London Corporation Lord Mayor of the City of London Wards of the City of London Guildhall Livery Companies Lord Mayor's Show City of London Police Bank of England

Structures	St Paul's Cathedral Tower of London Palace of Whitehall Westminster Hall London Bridge Tower Bridge Westminster Abbey Big Ben The Monument Fortifications

Category

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