Water
The Thames Water Ring Main supplies much of London with water. Sewage disposal was historically a problem, causing major pollution of the River Thames and potable water supplies. London suffered from major outbreaks of cholera and typhus well into the mid-19th century. Indeed, the problem was so severe that Parliament was suspended on occasion due to the stench from the river. These problems were solved when Sir Joseph Bazalgette completed his system of intercepting mains to divert sewage from the Thames to outfalls east of London, where the tide would sweep the sewage out to sea.
Read more about this topic: Infrastructure In London
Famous quotes containing the word water:
“It is by teaching that we teach ourselves, by relating that we observe, by affirming that we examine, by showing that we look, by writing that we think, by pumping that we draw water into the well.”
—Henri-Frédéric Amiel (1821–1881)
“Before the land rose out of the ocean, and became dry land, chaos reigned; and between high and low water mark, where she is partially disrobed and rising, a sort of chaos reigns still, which only anomalous creatures can inhabit.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“When the water of a place is bad it is safest to drink none that has not been filtered through either the berry of a grape, or else a tub of malt. These are the most reliable filters yet invented.”
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)