~150 years ago cities were awash in sewage and we somehow managed to control that in most of the world. We need the same level of effort with plastics.
The Victorian period – when Queen Victoria sat on the throne – saw Britain become a global industrial power, with a huge empire to fund enormous engineering projects at home and abroad.
Along with the London Underground, the capital’s sewage system is undoubtedly one of the most impressive Victorian achievements.
After the Great Stink of 1858, Bazalgette was asked to solve the city’s disease-spreading sewage issues. His solution, completed in 1875, was a network of brick-lined tunnels and pumping stations so future-proof that much of it’s still used today.
Mike