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‘Flushable’ wipes, other items blamed for clogs

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By Rachel Mergen

 

“Its seems like we tend to make lists of things that should not go down a toilet, which leaves us open to getting things that are not on the list down the toilet. For example, how many times have you found a G.I. Joe Doll at your wastewater plant? It obviously was flushed down the toilet, but since it was not on our list of things to not flush down the toilet, (people feel) it’s OK,” stated wastewater trainer Chris Groh, in a letter sent to the Prairie du Chien Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Lately, flushable bathroom wipes have become a trend in society. With buyers not wanting them collected in their garbage cans, they enjoy being able to simply dispose of them with a single flush.

The Prairie du Chien Wastewater Treatment Plant has a simple response to such disposal of these items: “Don’t.” The only items that belong down the pipes of toilets are toilet paper and human bodily waste. These few items can breakdown and not create clogs. Yet, flushable wipes, diapers, rags and bathroom mop heads, along with most other household objects, cannot and will only cause problems for both wastewater plant staff and the community. 

Why are flushable wipes not actually flushable? Cleansing wipes are made of plastic, and if consumers try to tear one apart, it will be obvious that the wipes cannot dissolve. 

According to Groh, the companies selling these products are able to call them flushable due to the fact that after three hours of being in a collection system, 25 percent of the item’s mass has disappeared. 

How does incorrect disposal of these products affect the community and the wastewater plant? According to Groh, “As operators, we know these wipes will plug pumps, shear apart and the resulting fibers will wrap around impellers or shafts— causing failures­—and that they have to be removed from the treatment flow at the plant head-works, since they will not biodegrade. Many plants have installed new head-works to get around these issues. You simply must pull them out of the influent and throw them away for whomever flushed them down their toilet.”

With wipes being disposed of incorrectly, thousands of dollars have to be put toward unclogging and fixing pipes, both at the plant and near local homes, stated Glen Goodrich, superintendent at the Prairie du Chien Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Just because an item says it is flushable, does not mean that it belongs in the toilet. Instead, for the sake of the community and wastewater management teams, it should be disposed in the nearest trash can.

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