Drains and toilets

Disposing of items and substances via drains and toilets

The ONLY things that should be put down the toilet are the 3Ps:- Pee, Poo and Paper, NOTHING ELSE!

Other items e.g. wipes, ear buds and sanitary towels should NOT be put down the toilet. They could end up polluting our local rivers and the ocean around our coast. This pollution could stay there for years as these items do not break down quickly.

Currently the biggest problem in our sewage system is the disposal of fat and oils which can result in enormous ‘fatbergs’ the size of a small car. These need to be broken up to be removed. A considerable and unnecessary expense to us all.

Turps, paint, battery acid and other solvents or corrosive substances should never be disposed of down the drain, however convenient it may seem. Drains in the UK can often leak or cause run off during rain, the contents can then end up in water and marine environments. Every year 3.6 million tonnes of sewage sludge is reprocessed and spread onto agricultural land across the UK. As it’s not possible to remove such chemicals from the sewage it must be incinerated releasing CO2 into the atmosphere. The chemicals will also be released into the atmosphere and will eventually fall as rain, contaminating the environment.