The first of two London “super sewers” — the Lee Tunnel — designed to reduce combined sewer overflows from going into the River Thames and River Lee, officially opened on Jan. 28.

The tunnel, which runs from Thames Water’s Abbey Mills pumping station to Beckton Sewage Treatment Works, cost nearly $1 billion and is the largest project undertaken in the United Kingdom since 1989. It is 4.3 miles long and 24 feet in diameter at a depth of 250 feet.

“At the moment we have 30 million tons of raw, untreated sewage being pumped into our beautiful Thames every year,” Mayor Boris Johnson told Sky News. “That is completely unacceptable.”

A second super sewer — the 15-mile Thames Tideway Tunnel — is under construction and is due for completion in 2023.

Source: The Daily Telegraph, Wikipedia

St. Louis MSD Plans to Demolish Vacant Structures
The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is proposing a plan to tear down nearly 7,000 vacant buildings scattered throughout the city. The district says the eyesores only lead to more water entering its combined sewer system during rain events.

Previously, the district could only afford to spend $1 million annually to knock down about 200 buildings each year, according to a report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A bond issue that included more money for demolitions failed in August, as more and more buildings become vacated post-recession.

MSD now wants to spend $13.5 million of its own money to tear down vacant buildings as a means of stepping up efforts in the fight against stormwater. Areas where the district see the most benefit in terms of runoff is primarily centered in north St. Louis where the city’s vacant properties are more concentrated.

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Chicago Water District to Deliver Drinking Water to Flint
On Feb. 6, commissioners and staff form the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) will be distributing bottles of water to residents of Flint, Michigan, amid the ongoing lead-contamination crises there.

MWRD partnered with the MWRD Credit Union to coordinate efforts to create a voluntary fund to purchase 36,000 bottles of water.

“MWRD understands the value of water and the importance of clean water in our daily lives,” the district said in a statement. “Watching the situation develop in Flint, Michigan, from afar, we were compelled to do something to let the people know they are not alone and that there are people who care and want to help in this time of crises.”

Source: press release