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Sanitary Circumstances. 29
WATER SUPPLY.
The Wnter Supply is that of the Metropolitan Water Board—
the supply is constant and sufficient and of good quality. The best
proof of the quality is the fact that Enteric Fever, which is largely
a water-borne disease, is practically non-existent in the district.
The raw Thames water has to be stored so as to allow of
sedimentation and filtration.
A system in which a river water of reasonably good and
uniform quality is pumped into a nearly full storage reservoir of
adequate capacity at the same rate as water is being abstracted for
filtration purposes is in a state of what may be termed "quality
equilibrium."Any falling off in the quantity or the quality of the
river water upsets, in greater or less measure, this equilibrium.
Reservoirs and filters possess, it is true, an immense "reserve
of purifying ability," but it would be a most unwise policy to take
too much advantage of this circumstance and abstract river water
independently of its quality, or rush impure river water through
depleted service reservoirs in the hope that the sand filters would
sufficiently remove the impurities. Hence arises the desirability
of considering the feasibility of adopting a new factor in the London
water question, namely, the occasional employment of supplementary
processes of purification.
REFUSE DESTRUCTOR AND SLAB PRESSING
PLANT.
The Refuse Destructor is one of Heenan and Froude's
Destructors, provided with three Trough Grates which are handfed
from the back, and mechanically clinkered from the front.
The heat is used to raise steam in the Boiler for the purpose
of driving the fan for the forced draught, well pump, Electric
Lighting set for lighting the works, and for the engine for the Slab
Pressing Plant.