LONDON SEWERS

One of the unintended consequences of the Industrial Revolution and the attendant rapid increase of population was a critical increase in the raw sewage entering the River Thames in London. In 1865 the authorities approved the instillation of a comprehensive network of sewers and pumping stations across the city by Joseph Bazalgette. This massive project was completed in just a few years and is still the main system for the metropolis.

"Sweepings from butchers’ stalls, dung, guts, and blood, 
Drowned puppies, stinking sprats, all drenched in mud, 
Dead cats, and turnip tops, come tumbling down the flood."

LONDON SEWERS

One of the unintended consequences of the Industrial Revolution and the attendant rapid increase of population was a critical increase in the raw sewage entering the River Thames in London. In 1865 the authorities approved the instillation of a comprehensive network of sewers and pumping stations across the city by Joseph Bazalgette. This massive project was completed in just a few years and is still the main system for the metropolis.

"Sweepings from butchers’ stalls, dung, guts, and blood, 
Drowned puppies, stinking sprats, all drenched in mud, 
Dead cats, and turnip tops, come tumbling down the flood."