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70
C.—THE WATER SUPPLY.
The water supply of the borough was fully described in my report
for 1905, and it is unnecessary again to discuss the matter in detail.
Water for the northern part of the borough is purchased
in bulk from the London Water Board, and is derived from the
Thames. The rest of the borough, forming the so-called "Croydon"
area, is dependent on various wells in the chalk. Two important
works in connection with these wells were put in hand during the
year, and are recorded for future reference. On the Waddon site,
where the Committee possessed a bore-hole that had been yielding
water since July, 1899, the Committee decided to sink a well and to
provide a permanent pumping station. This work is still in progress,
and will probably be completed in 1911. During the progress
of the work the riparian owners of the Wandle and others promoted
a bill to safeguard the sources of that stream which, it was alleged,
would be depleted if unrestricted pumping were allowed at the
Waddon site. A compromise was finally arrived at whereby the
Corporation obtained Parliamentary sanction to pump as much as
50 million gallons in every period of 30 days. The Committee also
decided to proceed with the construction of open sand filters for the
purification of water derived from Addington Well, which has long
been known to be subject to intermittent contamination. The
necessary notices for works outside the district were given, and the
work was actually begun early in 1909. With regard to the safeguarding
of this well. I believe that the means to be adopted
at Addington will prove adequate provided the sand filters are properly
controlled by sufficiently frequent bacteriological examinations.
Concerning the general question of the best method of purifying
chalk water, it is satisfactory to learn that the Local Government
Board has already instituted a special investigation from which it
is to be hoped that valuable information will result.
With regard to water derived from the other Corporation wells,
I have nothing to add to my last report on this subject. The
question of taking steps to further safeguard the Surrey Street supply
should receive attention as soon as the Waddon well is available
and it is to be hoped that by that time the Local Government
Board will have completed their investigations into the best method
of treating chalk waters.
The question of cesspools on the gathering ground, both of our
own and of other public water supplies, also deserves more consideration
than it seems to receive from the Local Government
Board. At present the Model Building Bye-Laws of the Local
Government Board always insist on builders making cesspools
watertight, but it is a matter of common knowledge that both in
the districts around Croydon and elsewhere, local authorities do no