13/08/09
Hand wipes flushed down the toilet are causing an increase in blocked sewers, with very unhappy consequences.
Understandably the threat of swine flu has led more people to make use of antiseptic hand wipes. But many of these wipes are being flushed down the toilet causing blocked drains and problems at sewage treatment plants.
Water UK is asking everyone who uses hand wipes to think before they flush to avoid blockages.
As well as wipes, many other items such as nappies, sanitary products and cotton buds are flushed every day, resulting in thousands of homes suffering blocked drains and in some cases actual sewer flooding.
The cost of misusing the toilet as a dustbin is measured in the misery of blockages but also in financial terms. Cleaning up costs water and sewerage companies millions of pounds each year. The costs are met by all customers in their sewerage bills.
The national sewer network and wastewater treatment plants are designed to deal effectively with human waste and specified industrial effluent.
Water and sewerage companies are working hard to explain the risks of using the system for inappropriate items. Some are running active information campaigns or building on the national Bag It and Bin It initiative.
To find out more about what not to flush visit www.bagandbin.org.
Leaflet: How to dispose of your waste responsibly, avoid blocked drains and the flooding of your homeFor more information please contact:
Water UK Communication
020 7344 1809 (out of hours 07833 450544)
