Pre Sanitary Commissioners

After the capture of Gibraltar in 1704 there was no public water supply as such. The military looked after their needs as best they could and the population fended for themselves generally using the old Spanish aqueduct/fountain and wells of brackish water. As the population and strength of the garrison increased, it was sheer necessity which dictated that underground tanks, collecting rain water from roofs, should be incorporated in the construction of barracks and dwellings, around 1853. By 1863 there were 136 dwellings with underground tanks catering for the needs of 4,497 persons for ten months in the year at 6.75 litres per head per day. A further 179 houses inhabited by 2,775 persons used 6.75 litres per head per day derived from the old Spanish fountain in the centre of town and from wells in the North Front area. This water was conveyed from source to the houses in barrels or buckets. A further 133 houses used by 2,320 persons had wells yielding 4.5 litres per head per day of brackish water. Matters were made worse when many of the private wells were closed down in an effort to stem the cholera epidemic and the use of the Spanish aqueduct was discontinued for Public Health reasons.

In 1863 a Parliamentary Commission on Barrack and Hospital Improvement enquired into the sanitary conditions and improvements of Mediterranean stations. In evidence given to the Commission the Garrison Quarter Master had the following to say:

"The inhabitants (of Gibraltar) owe nothing to the British Government for the small supply of water they have had for 150 years".

The Commission reported that it was hardly too much to say that there was not a water pipe in the whole Town except for the old aqueduct. They also made proposals for the preparation of an area of rock above the Moorish Castle area as a catchment area for rainwater. The vegetation was stripped and the rock so exposed rendered impervious by filling in cracks with cement sand mortar. The water so derived was to be conveyed into a large 5,682 cubic metres reservoir constructed of masonry and concrete.

Following the Report of the Parliamentary Commission, the Sanitary Commissioners to Gibraltar were set up and entrusted with the task of laying on a piped water supply to the Community. The Sanitary Commissioners provided the foundations to the present water supply system. In 1869 the first Public Health Ordinance was published wherein it was made mandatory for underground tanks to be provided for any new dwellings to be constructed. Even today our Public Health Ordinance requires that new dwellings, in areas where potable water is not available from the Public Water Supply network, must be provided with underground tanks. This law, however, has limited application today since most development areas are within a reasonable distance from our water mains.

In 1869 ground water exploration was initiated by Mr E Roberts, Engineer to the Sanitary Commissioners. A sandy aquifer was found at the isthmus, which links Gibraltar to Spain. Wells were constructed and a pump house and pumping system built to convey this water to public reservoirs at Moorish Castle and Europa Road areas. The water from these wells became brackish very quickly and was used mainly for sanitary purposes; the water collected from rains being used for dietetic purposes. From this developed our unique system of dual water supplies whereby there are two supply and distribution systems; one for potable water and the other for seawater. Seawater is used for fire-fighting, street flushing, sewer flushing and other sanitary purposes where the use of potable water is not essential. Every house enjoys a supply of salt water paid for under the "Rates" and a supply of potable water that is metered and billed for on a monthly basis. This dual supply system reduces the amount of potable water required by over fifty percent. It is interesting to note that water, from the condensers of steam machinery used to lift seawater to various reservoirs, provided some 45.5 cubic metres of distilled water per annum in the late 1800's and was the first attempt in Gibraltar to produce fresh water from the sea.