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:
“As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul
after thee, O God.”
—Bible: Hebrew Psalm XLII (l. XLII, 1)
“Talk of a divinity in man! Look at the teamster on the highway, wending to market by day or night; does any divinity stir within him? His highest duty to fodder and water his horses! What is his destiny to him compared with the shipping interests?”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The woman ... turned her melancholy tone into a scolding one. She was not very young, and the wrinkles in her face were filled with drops of water which had fallen from her eyes, which, with the yellowness of her complexion, made a figure not unlike a field in the decline of the year, when the harvest is gathered in and a smart shower of rain has filled the furrows with water. Her voice was so shrill that they all jumped into the coach as fast as they could and drove from the door.”
—Sarah Fielding (1710–1768)