1858年泰晤士河“大恶臭”及其治理探析

The “Great Stink” of the Thames in 1858 and Its Control

1858年夏,英国最重要的河流泰晤士河伦敦段出现"大恶臭",持续一月有余。报刊杂志形象、生动、及时的报道,使泰晤士河的严重污染引起广泛的社会关注。"大恶臭"是下水道污水和工业废水随意排放共同作用的结果,也是工业革命以来英国忽视和轻视河流污染的必然恶果。为此,英国政府通过修建伦敦主下水道改变下水道排水口、设立权责明确的河流管理机构、推进相关立法限制工厂的废水排放等措施进行治理,并取得明显成效。"大恶臭"是英国河流污染防治史上的重要事件,为今日河流保护和河流污染治理提供了经验借鉴。

In the summer of 1858, the London section of the Thames, the most important river in Britain, was surrounded by the "Great Stink" which lasted for more than a month. It caused widespread attention to the polluted Thames with the graphic, vivid and timely coverage of newspapers and magazines. The "Great Stink" was caused by the reckless discharge of sewage and industrial wastewater, and was also the inevitable disastrous consequence of the neglect and ignorance of river pollution in Britain since the industrial revolution. To tackle the stink, the British government had made significant achievements of improvement by building a main sewer in London to change the sewer drains, establishing river management agencies respectively with clear and specific responsibilities, and enacting relevant legislation to limit wastewater discharge from factories, etc. The "Great Stink" was an important event in the history of river pollution prevention and control in Britain, offering valuable experience for river protection and river pollution control afterwards.