Water transfer scheme
Thames Tideway Tunnel
A 25 km storage and transfer tunnel beneath the Thames built to intercept combined sewer overflow discharges that Bazalgette’s Victorian system can no longer contain.
Key facts
- Operator
- Tideway
- Length
- approximately 25 km
- Diameter
- up to 7.2 m
- Purpose
- Intercept combined sewer overflow discharges to the tidal Thames
- Overflows intercepted
- the great majority of discharge volume in central London
- Funding
- A separately regulated infrastructure provider, recovered through Thames Water bills
Context
The tunnel exists because London’s sewers are combined — they carry both sewage and rainfall — and were sized for a much smaller population and a far less paved city. Rather than separating the systems, which would mean rebuilding the drainage of central London, the tunnel captures the overflow and conveys it to Beckton for treatment. It is the largest single water infrastructure project undertaken in the UK in modern times.
Relationships
- Located in: England
Related intelligence
Kielder Watersame placeRutland Watersame placeChalk aquifer of southern Englandsame placeBroad Street cholera outbreaksame placeThe Great Stinksame placeCamelford water pollution incidentsame placeThe 1976 droughtsame placeThe 2022 droughtsame placeYorkshire droughtsame placeDevon Cryptosporidium outbreaksame placeSouthern Water — record penalty for wastewater offencessame placeThames Water — Thames pollution finesame place
Sources
- Global Water System Project — Global Reservoir and Dam Database. Open — attribution required · CC BY 4.0
- Peer-reviewed scientific literature — Open-access hydrology, water chemistry and water use research. Public but restricted · Publisher terms — public access, reuse not clearly granted
- OpenStreetMap Foundation — OpenStreetMap. Open — attribution required · Open Database Licence (ODbL) 1.0