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Causing a Stink!

I was asked recently if I knew what the unusual piece of street furniture was in Orchard Road – a strange tall monolith near the junction of Water Lane. As it happened I did know! Many years ago, this nondescript pillar that could easily be mistaken for a lamp post they forgot to attach a light to, used to give of an unpleasant smell of rotten eggs particularly on a hot summer’s day. The pole is in fact a sewage ventilation pipe. Although they go by a variety of names (Stench Pipe is one), if you’re looking online for information, you are more likely to find them under the name of Stink Pipe.

There are at least ten stink pipes dotted around the village and all in working order. Most stand alone and are clearly in view. Some have trees growing alongside and one looks exceptional in the summer with its growing tendrils of ivy spiralling up the pole.

These unassuming looking columns (particularly in Melbourn) have several functions. Firstly, they are pressure release valves used to prevent a build-up of gas pressure in the sewers in the event of a blockage or any other build-up of gas, and secondly, they ensure that any of this gas (corrosive Hydrogen sulphide which gives the rotten egg smell) is vented off. The gas usually occurs when sewage is being pumped long distances or on a higher plain than the sewage plant. The sewage can become septic if it does not travel fast enough.

Although the underground sewage pipes run throughout the village there are a few areas where the pipes require venting. A pipe runs from the highest point in the village – the top of Water Lane – down to Orchard Road, along Orchard Road to Norgett’s Lane and then along The Moor. Another section runs through Dolphin Lane and along Cross Lane and into Station Road.

Fortunately, the rotten egg smell has diminished, or at least you don’t hear complaints about it these days! This is partly due to the improvements in the underground sewage system. However, not all is rosy in the sewage garden. As new developments are built, it is the developers who decide how they vent their sewage network and some of these systems are not to the liking of the water authorities. Authorities prefer the tried and tested stink pipes, as some of the new systems have proven incapable of coping with the build-up of pressure in the sewers resulting in some devastating consequences.

Looking on the internet, it would appear stench pipe watching is a little like trainspotting – people go around seeking out and keeping records of these strange poles. There are several websites dedicated to the ubiquitous ventilation pipe and numerous photographs that show off some amazing designs.

Strangely enough once you have gone out of your way to look for one of these unusual edifices you do tend to notice others as you travel around.

Melbourn has quite a few pipes; one can be found in Water Lane opposite Back Lane. This is the ivy-covered pole mentioned previously above. Along Orchard Road, starting at Water Lane, you will find one almost at the junction of these two roads. Further along there is one just

Orchard Road. The cause of the stink! Water Lane, looks exceptional in the summer with its growing tendrils of ivy spiralling up the pole.

before Norgett’s Lane and another just after Orchard Way. In New Road, there is one just past Carlton Rise and in Station Road there is one next to the Fire Engine shed. Dolphin Lane has two, one outside 13 Dolphin Lane and the other near 22 Dolphin Lane. There is also one near 4 Cross Lane and finally, one in The Moor just past Thatcher Stanford’s Close.

For the record, I have not walked the streets of Melbourn searching out these strange poles. Although some were known as mentioned earlier, the rest of Melbourn’s stink pipes can be found in the comfort of your home – using Google Street View.

Outside of the village, there is one along Whitecroft Road in Meldreth near ‘the stables’. Although difficult to see as it is surrounded by tall bushes, this pole is of the same design as those installed in Melbourn. There is also a slightly more ornate iron version on Meldreth Road at the boundary of Meldreth and Whaddon. Close to the boundary of Pampisford and Sawston there is a similar stink pipe to those in Melbourn, ironically this pipe sits outside the old tanning factory, a place that used to cause it’s own stink.

Heading into Cambridge, you can see one as you pass through Harston and if you’re travelling into central Cambridge, you can see one outside Brown’s restaurant in Trumpington Road. No doubt there are many more in the area.

I must confess, the five mentioned above were seen whilst out driving. There are many examples of these Victorian structures throughout the country and for something so unremarkable as a stench pipe, in typical Victorian style they are some of the most elaborate designs to be seen on the street. Made of cast iron, many are Grade II listed.

Melbourn’s pipes are cast iron, but coated in a concrete covering. Concrete on its own would not last long as the hydrogen sulphide gas literally eats the concrete. The picture on the right shows the cast iron below the worn concrete coating.

Richmond Road, Stockton-on-Tees. Many of these structures are Grade II listed. An elaborate Victorian cast iron design seen in St Julian’s Farm Road, London.

The Great Stink

It’s not clear when stench pipes were first introduced. Most household waste found its way to an outflow, usually the stream, river or the local pond. Any build-up of gas in the sewage pipes worked its way back up through the household toilets. The invention and installation of the ‘S-bend’ toilet, solved the problem with the backflow of gas – for the householder, in turn, it exacerbated the gas build up in the sewage system.

To view the reports in full visit: www.eastamb.nhs.uk/ performance/patient-surveys/Patient-experience-reportemergency-services-november-2016.pdf If you were treated by EEAST and want to tell us your thoughts, you can follow on Twitter and tweet us @ EastEnglandAmb, email: eoeasnt.Feedback@nhs.net, or visit our website: www.eastamb.nhs.uk/contact-us.

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Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service are committed to supporting the safety and wellbeing of residents in all the communities that we serve.

The Safe and Well visit will provide us with sufficient information to support you and, with your permission, refer you to selected partner agencies who will be able to support you further. We will not share your data with marketing companies or for other purposes.

Our visit will last no longer than 60 minutes and is completely FREE of charge.

Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Delicatessen Café

Butchery Fresh Flowers Gift Shop Garden Shop

Plant Centre Free-range Eggs Christmas Shop P–Y–O

Open 7 days a week all year round

A10 Melbourn By-Pass, Melbourn,

Royston, Herts SG8 6DF Tel: 01763 260418 www.burylanefarmshop.co.uk

Our visit will assess five key elements: 1 Fire safety in the home – including cooking, general safety and escape plans. 2 Falls prevention – including simple remedial action such as replacing lightbulbs or taping down loose carpet. 3 Alcohol use – Alcohol related illness in the over 65s is on the increase. We can provide you with helpful information. 4 Stay well and warm – Can you afford to heat your home? Do you have access to a hot meal? Do you have access to all the services available to you? 5 Crime reduction – We can provide advice on making your home more secure in addition to advice to make you less vulnerable to scams or fraud. You are under no obligation to answer any questions that you do not want to, but the more information you provide us with, the better we will be able to support you. We can also provide advice in relation to promoting the health and safety of individuals with hoarding concerns, as well as providing valuable information to care providers.

During March, we will also be raising awareness of the fire risks associated with smoking, with national No Smoking Day on the 8th.

We often find smoking is one of many factors making someone more at risk of fire, for example, when combined with poor mobility, health problems or being elderly, it increases someone’s chance of having a fire.

Here are some tips to take on board or give to friends and family that smoke: • Never leave a lit cigarette or pipe unattended. • Always use a proper ashtray and make sure the contents are cold before you tip it in the bin. • Never smoke in bed and avoid smoking in a chair if you are likely to fall asleep. Most importantly, fit a working smoke alarm and test it regularly. Don’t forget to also test the smoke alarms of those you love. If you have an elderly or vulnerable relative, friend or neighbour, pop by and make sure they have a working smoke alarm. If they don’t, that is something we can provide as part of a Safe and Well visit. Eligibility To find out if you are eligible for a Safe and Well visit, Enquire online. Alternatively, if you are unable to apply online or have a query about an enquiry form that has already been submitted, please telephone 0800 917 9994.

Opening days / times – All Year

Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm Further enquiries, visit our website and search for Safe and Well For more information on firework and bonfire safety log on to www.cambsfire.gov.uk, follow us on social media or call 01480 444500. If you wish to get in contact, please email pressoffice@cambsfire.gov.uk

In London, it all came to a ‘head’ (pun intended!) when in the mid 1800s, the sewage in the river Thames and the surrounding estuaries that fed into it, became foul. The smell from the river became so intense Parliament threatened to leave the City if something wasn’t done. It became known as the ‘Great Stink of London’. Miles of close wells and pits of houses, where the inhabitants gasped for air, stretched far away towards every point of the compass. Through the heart of the town a deadly sewer ebbed and flowed, in the place of a fine fresh river.

Little Dorrit, Charles Dickens 1855

Just before the ‘Great Stink’ Sir Goldsworthy Gurney, a scientist and inventor, known for his ventilation systems installed in mines, was commissioned to improve the ventilation for the new Houses of Parliament. Apparently, he also experimented by placing a pipe in the sewers below Big Bens Clock Tower at Westminster and strapped it up the side of the building! Although he had some success in moving air around the palace buildings, eradicating the foul smell was beyond his skill. However, the beginnings of the first sewer ventilation pipe had been developed. A Cartoon from Punch, published during the height of the “Great Stink”.

The final solution was a complete overhaul of the sewage system throughout the City and the inclusion of stink pipes. We pour it [the filth] out into the rivers flowing through our towns, and pollute them as never before have rivers been After the revamp of the sewage system in London, stink pipes were placed throughout the city and many still exist. Some were designed to vent polluted since the world was made. The soot-coloured river at the main sewage junctions as this one in Bromley-by-Bow, Violet Road, Manchester; the Tarne at Birmingham, a small stream which, London even before reaching Birmingham, receives much of the animal refuse of two hundred and seventy thousand persons; may be said to contain in dry seasons, as much sewerage as water. The Thames which, before reaching London, is polluted by the drainage from seven hundred thousand people, and in London deposits the filth of hundreds of thousands upon mud-banks exposed daily at low water, and in these hot days, festering at the heart of the metropolis. These rivers represent the difficulty that has to be met before the new order of things can be regarded as established with a proper harmony in all its parts. Tame water at Birmingham is drunk by fifty thousand people. Londoners now look for their Thame’s drinking-water in the cleanest places they can find; but what are they that we should call them clean? Disease is begotten – fish are destroyed.

The Illustrated London News, Charles Dickens 1858

Several Cholera epidemics spread throughout the country during the early 1800s, killing almost 55,000 people.

The Cholera bacteria was transmitted by water contaminated by raw sewage which was pumped into the rivers and seeped into wells. For many, this was the only source of drinking and washing water. The illness caused violent cramps, vomiting and diarrhoea. Dehydration soon followed and was so severe that the blood thickened and the skin became deathlike and blue. Cholera victims died within a matter of hours. But that calls for another story…! Ed. PS