ABSTRACT
As with water supply, the basic problems of managing water quality in Scotland were defined in the 1930s, but were not fully tackled for thirty years or more. Here, too, a lack of professionalism in staffing and the fragmented nature of the local authorities, which have throughout been responsible for sewerage and sewage treatment, are important explanatory themes, as is contemporary practice in England and Wales. The distinctive feature, however, is the creation of the River Purification Boards and it is therefore appropriate to begin with the Scottish Advisory Committee on River Pollution Prevention, whose work has already been introduced in Chapter Two. Changes in legislation, policies and administrative structures of relevance to the management of river water quality are then considered.
