§ MR. CRAWFORDasked the Vice President of the Board of Trade, Whether it is true that the Navigation of the River Thames is in danger of being obstructed by the formation of mud banks near the outfall of the Main Drainage Sewers at Crossness and Barking Reach?
§ MR. STEPHEN CAVEEarly in the summer a vessel grounded in Barking Reach at a time of the tide when there ought to have been sufficient water to float her. A survey was ordered by the Conservancy Board, the Report of which, presented on the 10th of June, states that there were large accumulations of mud, in some places to the depth of six feet, off the Main Drainage outfall. Some of this mud was sent to Dr. Letheby, and an analysis made by him, the Report of which is dated the 24th of June, left no doubt in his mind of its being composed in a great degree of sewage in a state of decomposition. On the 25th of June a communication was made by the Conservancy Board 106 to the Metropolitan Board of Works; to which a reply was sent on the 11th of November, stating that the Board had acted in obedience to Acts of Parliament, and that it was the duty of the Conservancy Board to remove shoals. The Conservators will have before them a report from their engineer on the best mode of doing this on Monday next, and will proceed at once to act upon it. There is therefore no danger of the navigation of the Thames being obstructed. I have received copies of a minute of the Metropolitan Board of Works questioning the alleged origin of the shoal and their liability to remove it, also of a report from their engineer admitting that the question is a complicated one, and recommending a conference with the Conservancy Board for the purpose of discussing the whole subject.
§ MR. CRAWFORDasked, whether there would be any objection to produce the Papers to which the right hon. Gentleman had referred?
§ MR. STEPHEN CAVEreplied, that as far as he knew, there would be no objection whatever to produce them.