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‘Super Sewer’ Completed After 10 Years of Work Promises to Revolutionize Wastewater Treatment and Improve the Quality of the River Thames Water in London
After ten years of construction, London’s “super sewer” is finally complete. The project, which cost £5 billion (US$6.3 billion), is set to transform human waste treatment in the British capital.
An Overloaded System
The Thames Tideway Tunnel connects to the Victorian sewer system at 21 different points. This original system, 150 years old, was designed to serve four million people but has had to accommodate more than double that population.
As a result, human waste and stormwater were regularly discharged into the River Thames.
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A material four times lighter than steel and twice as strong has just arrived at construction sites and may permanently retire the traditional rebar, with its structures lasting more than a century without needing a single maintenance.
The new super sewer promises to solve this problem. At 25 km long, the main tunnel has a diameter of 7.2 meters, equivalent to three double-decker buses side by side.
The connecting tunnels have diameters of 5 meters and 2 meters. Its capacity is impressive: 1.6 million cubic meters, or about 56.5 million cubic feet of sewage.
A Monumental Construction
The construction of the project began in 2016 at 24 different locations across London. More than 20 deep shafts were excavated, some as wide as the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral.
Six tunneling machines were used. They were named after inspiring women from the area, including activists for women’s rights, a charitable doctor, and a scientist.
Since the system began operating, the equivalent of 2,200 Olympic swimming pools of sewage has been prevented from being dumped into the River Thames.
The successful operation of the project will depend on rigorous and continuous monitoring by the team, especially during periods of heavy rainfall when the tunnel’s performance will be put to the test.
The Future of the River Thames
“This is another significant step forward – with this final connection completed, the super sewer is fully installed and operational, protecting the Thames,” said Andy Mitchell, CEO of Tideway.
Mitchell emphasized that the next step will be tested under storm conditions, which is expected to occur in the coming months: “Our next step is to test it under storm conditions – that’s why we’re keeping an eye on the weather – and we’ll do that in the coming months. We are at the beginning of a new chapter for London and its river. Our mission has always been to create not just a tunnel but a healthier and more prosperous environment for the river and its inhabitants.”
With information from New Atlas.
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