Sewage Floods Threaten London Amid Surging Population

London is growing, and so are its sewage and water problems.

London environmental officials are warning that population growth in the British capital could lead to water shortages of sewage overflows, Bloomberg recently reported. The London Assembly’s Environment Committee, an elected body, is calling for swift political action.

The committee said in a recent report: “Such growth will tend to increase the city’s environmental impacts, working against efforts to moderate them. Left unchecked, the impacts would include carbon emissions, water shortage, sewage outflow, urban sprawl and habitat destruction.”

The city’s population is expected to grow by 100,000 this year, and it could hit 13.4 million by 2050, Bloomberg reported. The need for housing could put pressure on waterways, as well.

“Demand for water could outstrip supply by 20 percent by 2040, the committee said, citing data from Thames Water Ltd. projecting a shortfall of 41 million liters a day,” the report said. The committee report urged city government “to implement a more sustainable policy on water and waste management and energy use.”

London is in the midst of a major project to overhaul its sewers. The city’s so-called “super sewer” will be a 16-mile tunnel, according to Reuters. The more than $6 billion project aims to reduce the amount of sewage that overflows into the River Thames each year.

“Large parts of London's sewer system were constructed over 150 years ago by Sir Joseph Bazalgette. Although the brick-constructed tunnels are said to still be structurally sound, they were not built to manage the capacity that is required today,” Gizmag reported.

There are 50 combined sewer overflow points along the Thames. “The new tunnel will link the 34 most polluting outlets, siphoning away sewage that would otherwise have been directed into the river. The system will also act as a huge storage tank, capable of containing up to 1,600,000 cubic meters (56,500,000 cubic ft.) of sewage until it can be treated,” the report said.

One London block got labelled the city’s “stinkiest street” after it faced its fifth major sewage flood in a decade this month, according to the Daily Mail.

“The road became the scene of London's worst ever sewage spill when thousands of gallons of chemical sewage overflowed into ten houses as well as the River Thames. During the 1998 spill, 11 houses were evacuated and several residents were hospitalised,” the report said.

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