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SEWERAGE AND SEWAGE DISPOSAL
It is the general duty of a local authority to provide for sewerage of their
district under Part II of the Public Health Act, 1936, certain sections of which deal
with the various provisions relating to sewerage, as amended and supplemented
by Sections 12 to 23 of the Public Health Act, 1961.
The Rivers (Prevention of Pollution) Act, 1961, and regulations made thereunder,
make further provisions for maintaining or restoring the wholesomeness
of the rivers and other inland or coastal waters of England and Wales in respect,
inter alia, of sewerage and sewage disposal.
Certain other provisions in respect of drains and sewers are provided in the
Middlesex County Council Acts of 1956 and 1961.
The Borough Engineer and Surveyor is responsible for sewers under the highways.
During the year, further connections of foul water sewers to the deep main
trunk sewers within the Borough have been made.
The Health Department is responsible for the clearance of certain drains and
sewers on private property and a total of 966 stoppages were cleared during the
year.
Repair of drains and private sewers is the responsibility of the users and during
the year 38 notices were served for the repair of drains and 32 for the repair of
private sewers. By the end of the year, 26 of the former had been complied with
and 12 of the latter. These twelve private sewers were repaired by the Council
in default of the owners, from whom the cost was recovered.
The function of sewage disposal was vested in the Greater London Council by
Part V of the London Government Act, 1963. Two Disposal Works are within the
Borough, one at Deephams and the other at Ponders End. The latter is scheduled
to be taken out of operation in due course. A full report on sewage disposal is
made in the Annual Report of the Director of the Department of Public Health
Engineering of the Greater London Council.
For certain of the information in this report I am indebted to the Borough
Engineer and Surveyor.
PUBLIC CONVENIENCES
Under Section 87 of the Public Health Act, 1936, a local authority may provide
public conveniences in proper and convenient situations.
The Council provides 49 public conveniences. In addition, the conveniences
at Southgate and Oakwood Underground stations and nine conveniences attached to
public houses are available to the general public, by agreement with London Transport
Executive, and the Brewers concerned.
The Health Department is responsible for the staffing, cleansing and maintenance
of all public conveniences, including those situated in parks and open spaces.
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