River Thames
Catchment area and discharge

The Thames River Basin District, including the Medway catchment, covers an area of 16,130 km (6,229 sq mi). The entire river basin is a mixture of urban and rural, with rural landscape predominating in the western part. The area is among the driest in the United Kingdom. Water resources consist of groundwater from aquifers and water taken from the Thames and its tributaries, much of it stored in large bank-side reservoirs.

The Thames itself provides two-thirds of London's drinking water, while groundwater supplies about 40% of public water supplies in the overall catchment area. Groundwater is an important water source, especially in the drier months, so maintaining its quality and quantity is extremely important. Groundwater is vulnerable to surface pollution, especially in highly urbanised areas.
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