| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1852 | Tidal / fluvial flooding in London and Thames Valley. |
| 1852 | Metropolis Water Act 1852: Water company abstraction of water for public supply restricted to freshwater river above Teddington Lock. Reservoirs within five miles of St Paul's Cathedral to be covered, etc. |
| 1853-54 | Cholera outbreak in London and other parts of the British Isles. |
| 1855 | Metropolis Local Management Act 1855 establishes first London-wide government: Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW). |
| 1857 | Thames Conservancy Act 1857: Crown claims to ownership of riverbed and foreshore of the tidal river (to mean high water mark) given up and transferred to new Thames Conservancy (Staines to Yantlet Creek). |
| 1858 | 'Great Stink' sewerage pollution event on Thames in London. Metropolis Local Management Act 1858 paves way for MBW to build 'Main Drainage System' (Joseph Bazalgette: 1860s/'70s). Scheme based on 'combined system', combining domestic and industrial wastewater/sewage with rainwater 'run-off'. Thames embankment works included in building plans. |
| 1861 | Land Drainage Act 1861: New drainage boards to be elected by ratepayers, on petition from local owners and proprietors to Enclosures Commissioners. Similar powers to Commissioners of Sewers. (Excluded Scotland, Ireland and London; superseded by Land Drainage Act 1918). |
| 1865 | The Common, Open Spaces and Footpath Preservation Society formed (later: Commons Preservation Society). |
| 1866 | Thames Conservancy Act 1866: Thames Conservancy's navigation authority (but not ownership) extended upstream to Cricklade, replacing Thames Navigation Commissioners (1771-1866). First Report of the Commissioners appointed to Inquire into the Best Means of Preventing the Pollution of Rivers (River Thames): Vol I, Report etc. Crossness Pumping Station opens (MBW Main Drainage). Cholera Outbreak: East London. |
| 1868/69 | Lee Conservancy Act 1868: Lee Conservancy Board set up (replacing Trustees of the Lee Navigation). Abbey Mills Pumping Station opens (MBW Main Drainage). |
| 1871 | Local Government Board Act 1871: establishes Local Government Board with responsibility for the water quality and supply of the Thames. Thames Valley Drainage Act 1871 (amended 1874/1890). |
| 1872 | Public Health Act 1872 (section 20): Corporation of London established as Sanitary Authority of the Port of London (for prevention of epidemic disease). |
| 1874 + 1875 | Flooding of Thames in London and Thames Valley. |
| 1876 | Rivers Pollution Prevention Act 1876 aimed to prevent disposal of solid matter, sewage and pollutants into rivers and streams. |
| 1878 | Princess Alice paddle steamer disaster near Beckton Sewage Treatment Works (MBW northern outfall sewer). 600 people are thought to have died by drowning or poisoning. |
| 1879 | Metropolis Management (Thames River Prevention of Floods) Amendment Act 1879: MBW obliged to ensure flood protection for low-lying parts of London (duty later transferred to LCC). Riverside owners obliged to raise river walls to be raised 5' above Trinity High Water mark (THW). |
| 1881 | 18 January 1881: Flooding of Thames to 5' above THW at Westminster. New compulsory flood defence level within MBW area raised to 5' 6" above THW. |
| 1882-84 | Royal Commission on Metropolitan Sewage Discharge (leads to disposal of sewage sludge in Thames estuary). Report of Select Committee of the House of Commons on Thames River Preservation, 1884. |
| 1883 | Monthly Thames flow records begin at Kingston; now held in UK National River Flow Archive (Littlewood and Marsh 1996: see Bibliography). |
| 1885 | Thames Preservation Act 1885 to facilitate leisure use of the upper river Thames. |
| 1886 | Tilbury Docks open. |
| 1889 | Local Government Act 1888 establishes London County Council (LCC) (replaces MBW). Responsible for sewerage, some flood protection, some river pollution duties (under Rivers Pollution Prevention Act 1876). Sewage sludge disposal in Thames estuary begins: from Beckton (1889) and Crossness (1891). Sludge boat service continues until 1998 (operated by LCC, GLC then TWA). |
| 1894 | Thames Valley Flooding. Thames Conservancy Act 1894 extended Conservancy pollution control powers within Thames catchment (excluding London; some powers below London). |
| 1897 | Storm surge flooding on Thames and Medway rivers. |
| 1898 | Royal Commission on the Treating and Disposing of Sewage (appointed 1898; Interim Report 1901; Final Report 1916). 8th Report introduced long-standing 'Royal Commission Standard' for measuring sewage pollution by Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD). |
| 1904 | Metropolitan Water Act 1902: New public corporation established: Metropolitan Water Board (MWB). Takes over from London’s eight private water companies, with right to abstract 130 million gallons a day (gpd) from River Thames for public water supply. |
| 1908-09 | Port of London Act 1908 creates new public body: Port of London Authority (PLA). Takes over from private London and India Docks Company and the Millwall Dock Company; harbour authority with river conservancy and some pollution control powers (replacing Thames Conservancy in tidal Thames). Thames piers transferred from LCC to PLA. |
| 1909 | Thames Conservancy becomes Thames Conservancy Board, now with local authority representatives. |
| 1911 | Thames Conservancy Act 1911: Allowed continuation of MWB's right to 130 million gpd from Thames for public water supply and to additional water subject to a minimum flow over Teddington Weir of 200 million gpd (to be reduced to 170 million gpd on completion of MWB reservoirs). |
| 1914-18 | World War One |
| 1918 | Land Drainage Act 1918: Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries empowered to establish Drainage Districts on petition from proprietors or County Council (replacing Land Drainage Act 1861 arrangements). |
| 1920 | Port of London (Consolidation) Act 1920 governs PLA conservancy role in tidal Thames: PLA responsible for flow and quality of river water; LCC sewage effluent exempt from PLA regulations. |
| 1926 | Statutory minimum flow over Teddington Weir reduced to 170 million gpd, following completion of MWB's Queen Mary Reservoir (remains in place until 1988). Land Drainage Act 1926: Greater land drainage powers given to County Councils. |
| 1927 | Report of the Royal Commission on Land Drainage in England and Wales, 1927 (Bledisoe Commission). |
| 1928 | January 1928: Storm surge flooding of Thames. Last major London flooding event. 14 people are drowned. Statutory river wall heights raised from 1930. Click here for report in The Guardian newspaper. London County Council (General Powers) Act 1929 governs LCC flood powers, alongside 1879 Act. |
| 1930 | Land Drainage Act 1930: Consolidates drainage legislation. Establishes Catchment Boards for low-lying and flood-prone areas to manage land drainage and flood protection for major rivers/groups of rivers. Boards to have oversight of Internal Drainage Boards. Standardises flood defence levels introduced. Thames Conservancy allocated catchment board powers. New Lea Conservancy Catchment Board established. London Excluded Area' is remains under LCC control. |
| 1932 | Thames Conservancy Act 1932: Pleasure boats, launches and house boats on Thames (above Teddington) to be registered with Thames Conservancy. |
| 1936 | Public Health (London) Act 1936: Corporation of London's role as Port 'Sanitary' altered to Port 'Health' Authority. |
| 1939- 1945 | World War Two (extensive war damage to river and flood defences). Central Advisory Water Committee (CACW) River Boards. Ministry of Health. Cmnd 6465 (1943) (Chair: Lord Milne). Water Act 1945 expands powers of Ministry of Health over water supply and land use for water resources. National Parks Committee appointed (Chair: Sir Arthur Hobhouse Hobhouse) (1945-48). Wildlife Conservation Special Committee appointed as advisory committee to National Parks Committee (Chair: Dr Julian Huxley) (1945-48). |