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55
certain buoyed area to the West of Leigh Middle Shoal, with a view to the
filling up of a deep hole there and increasing the scour of the river through
the navigable channel.
A complaint was received from the Borough Council of Southend as to
the nature of the material which was deposited off Leigh, they alleged that
this polluted the Thames Estuary at this part.
The various dredgers were kept under observation for some period, the
general result being that the material so dredged up was found principally
to consist of hard ballast and chalk.
On some occasions, however, it was noticed that the material dredged up
from the river, abreast of the Royal Albert Dock, contained a certain
proportion of the offensive black mud which the Conservators' chemist had
described as of the same nature as the solid matter passing into the river from
the outfalls.
The attention of the Conservators was drawn to this by the Port Sanitary
Committee, and it appeared that stringent instructions had been given that
material of this nature was to be taken out to the Black Deeps. The result
of the observations was that there was no reason to believe that it was the
practice to discharge offensive black material in the vicinity of Leigh.
The Southend-on-Sea Corporation introduced a Bill into Parliament.
during the Session of 1907, to obtain certain powers to provide for the
sewerage of their Borough, and in order to enable them to perform such duty
it is expedient to empower them to construct, maintain and use the works
authorised by this Act, and to confer upon them the further powers in this
Act.
Clauses 7 and 7a received the careful consideration of the Port Sanitary
Committee. They are as follows:—
"7. The Corporation may, by means of the works authorised by this
"Act, and of their existing sewerage works or any works constructed in
"lieu thereof, discharge sewage into the sea, and any bye-law made or to
"be made under the Sea Fisheries Regulation Act, 1888, shall not apply
"to the Corporation in the exercise of the powers of this section.
"7a. As from the date of the completion of the works authorised by
"this Act, the Corporation, in discharging sewage into the sea, shall
" observe the following provisions (that is to say):—
"(1) Before allowing sewage to be discharged into the sea the
"Corporation shall cause it to pass through screens or other suitable
"apparatus for the removal, so far as is reasonably practicable, of
"solid matter;
"(2) The sewage discharged into the sea by means of the
"existing 27-inch outfall sewer of the Corporation, situate east of
"the pier, shall be caused to pass through the existing tanks, known