Flushable wipes causing costly blockages
Date published: 15 October 2015
Wet wipes that have the potential to block sewers and damage the environment are costing council as much as $500,000 per year in blockages.
The wipes, which manufacturers claim are flushable, earned themselves a Shonky Award in recent Choice testing where it was determined they held together for 21 hours, compared to toilet paper which dissolves in minutes.
Townsville Water and Waste Committee chair Cr Ray Gartrell said wet wipes were a significant problem in the Townsville sewerage system.
"The reality is that wet wipes are not flushable. They cause ongoing problems causing blockages in our sewerage network and in people’s house drains," Cr Gartrell said.
"In addition, a blocked sewer means the sewage has to go somewhere, often overflowing into people’s yards or waterways, a situation dangerous to both health and the environment."
Wastewater Operations Manager Mark Vis said the problem was not confined to Townsville.
He said Sydney Water has claimed it costs them $12 million a year to manage the blockages and sewage spills from wet wipes, and London was famous in 2013 for finding a "fatberg" the size of a double decker bus in its sewerage system.
Fatbergs are conglomerates of congealed fats, wet wipes, sanitary products and other non-biodegradable solids.
"Ideally nothing should be flushed except the 3 Ps – pee, poo and paper. Anything else has the potential to cause upset to our sewerage system and increase the costs to manage," Mr Vis said.
Townsville Water has been working with the Water Services Association of Australia to find solutions to the problem.
Options include developing a standard for flushability and clear labelling of wet wipes as non-flushable unless they meet that standard.
Choice has referred the product to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission due to its misleading marketing.
