View report page

31
Housing—Building materials, paints and surface coatings, Town and Country
Planning Act enquiries, certain metal problems, soils and subsoil waters (in
relation to the effect on concrete), etc.
Public Health—Water supplies, ventilation of tunnels, air pollution, insecticides,
disinfectants, industrial hygiene and safety, etc.
Public Control—Samples under the Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Act, the Petroleum
Act, London Building Act, L.C.C. (Celluloid) Act, the Bread Order, etc.
Parks—Water of swimming baths and ponds, soils (horticultural), fertilisers, etc.
Education and children—School meals, swimming bath waters and drinking waters,
instructional visits of school parties to laboratories, etc.
Restaurants and Catering—Foodstuffs enquiries, and meals, utensils, etc.
Supplies—A wide range of all kinds of supplies such as foodstuffs, milk, paints,
chemicals, drugs, oils of all classes, floor and other polishes, soaps, solders and
other metals, synthetic detergents, plastics, etc.
Fire Brigade—Foaming compounds for fire extinguishers, rubber hose, fire proofing
materials, causes of fires and preventive measures, etc.
Miscellaneous—Efficiency of operation of steam raising and heating plants, corrosion
problems, laundry operation, civil defence, etc.
Sewage treatment
Throughout 1953 the whole of the sewage flow to the Northern Outfall Works was
treated by sedimentation and about one-quarter of it subsequently by the activated
sludge process. At the Southern Outfall Works, the whole of the flow continued to be
treated by primary sedimentation only. Regular sampling and examination were done
to assess the results of the treatment. In the case of both Outfall Works, the plants
functioned satisfactorily throughout the year and achieved as large a saving of B.O.D.
(biochemical oxgygen demand) load on the water of the river as could be expected.
The pilot sludge digestion plant at the Northern Outfall Works was subject to
analytical control, the rate of chargc being decided accordingly, and it functioned
satisfactorily, the gas produced (containing about 70 per cent. methane) being used for
power production at the Works.
As was mentioned in the report for last year, in an endeavour to improve the condition
of the water of the River Thames, a large programme of additions to the sewage
treatment works in order to producc better quality effluents was approved by the Council,
an expenditure of about 12 million pounds being involved. During 1953 the whole
of this project was approved by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government though
the actual construction will, of course, take several years to complete. At the Northern
Outfall Works the new detritus pits were nearly finished at the end of 1953 and a
considerable proportion of this installation was in operation. Good progress had also
been made with the new sedimentation channels which should be completed by the
end of 1954. The greater efficiency of these as compared with that of the very old ones at
present in operation should have a beneficial effect on the effluent, particularly when the
new activated sludge plant comes into operation to give secondary treatment to a
further portion of the primary sedimentation effluent. This latter additional plant will
be of the diffused air activated sludge type and will treat 60 million gallons per day in
addition to the 50 million gallons per day already dealt with by the present bioaeration
plant. The total flow to the works is about 200 million gallons per day.
In addition to the pilot sludge digestion plant mentioned above there was put into
operation towards the end of 1953 the ' old reservoir ' sludge digestion plant to deal
with about 1,200 tons of sludge per day. This was constructed by utilising redundant
large reservoirs from the original works of eighty years ago and it proved most successful,
C