Support our non-partisan non-profit newsroom 💜 Donate now

Thames Water, the UK’s biggest water company, struggles to plug a hole in its finances

Jul 6, 2023
Huge debts and raw sewage threaten the future of a major British utility.
Joan Fennelly, left, and Jo Robb of the Henley Mermaids swimming in the Thames — in spite of the sewage. “We’ve seen it all and it’s very upsetting.”
Mimisse Beard

There are hidden treasures in our sewage sludge

Apr 8, 2016
Millions of dollars worth of valuable metals end up being flushed down the drain, some coming from our own bodies.
Gold bars.
Wikipedia

Using sewage to measure habits in the legal pot market

Jul 13, 2015
Think of it like an anonymous, communitywide drug test.

How to turn sewage into a product people want

Feb 27, 2015
DC Water considers sewage a natural resource it can convert to a profitable product

Baltimore sewers: time bombs buried under the streets

Feb 25, 2015
The city's sewer system is 100 years old. Some pipes are made of wood or clay.

London's sewers overflow about once a week

May 23, 2014
The good news is, sewers don't always smell so bad.

Texas town closes the toilet-to-tap loop: Is this our future water supply?

Jan 6, 2014
About 40 percent of Big Spring’s water now comes from a $14 million “direct potable reuse” system.

For public good, not for profit.

What's the history of sewage treatment? How do biosolids fit in?

Aug 2, 2010
The circle of life. Milorganite pellets (photo above) are made from recycled waste, aka biosolids, and used to help fertilize crops and improve l...