The Thames experienced one of its low points in the summer of 1858. The smell that rose from it and made the members of Parliament at Westminster gasp was so terrible that it was called “The Great Stink” in 1858 Annals of London. In the Times one could read who had breathed this stench, “will never forget it and will be lucky enough to survive it”.
Back then, human and animal excrement, like industrial sewage, flowed untreated into the Thames, and the river only recovered a bit after a sewage system was built. However, for a long time it was not really good for “Father Thames”, today the river has to struggle with new adversities. Due to climate change, it is heating up by an average of 0.2 degrees Celsius per year.
But from an ecological point of view, there is now also a lot of good news to report: According to the report by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) on the state of the Thames, there has been a steady increase in bird species, marine mammals and natural habitats such as salt marshes over the past few decades. Some of the surprising species living in the Thames today include: seahorses, eels, seals and even sharks.
The water quality has also improved – the concentration of phosphorus has declined since the 1990s, while the concentration of oxygen has increased steadily since 2007. The Thames has not been so ecologically sound since the 19th century. Not bad for a body of water that was officially declared “biologically dead” in 1957. And it doesn’t stink anymore either.
Read more good news here.