Don't flush your flushable wipes, city and students remind Londoners
Wipes marketed as flushable can clog up sewer systems, with few exceptions
Two Western University students are on a mission started by London's sewer boss a year ago: spread the word that the clever marketing behind "flushable: wipes has led to clogged pipes and a disaster for city workers.
"The goal of our project is to educate the public about this new logo on products that are actually flushable, and to not just trust the marketing that has been done by these companies," said Alexandra Blair, a fourth-year biology student at Western University.
Blair and her partner, Alessia Buiga, have been working with Barry Orr, the city's sewer outreach and control inspector who's passionate about wastewater and how people can improve their environments.
"We have experts from across the globe who have come up with these specifications for manufacturers, who can put the IWSFG logo on their products after they've gone through our testings," Orr said. "The term is not government regulated. We want to stop the confusion about what is flushable and what is not."
The International Water Services Flushability Group (IWSFG) is made up of wastewater experts who test products to see if they are truly flushable. Most recently, Cottonelle Flushable Wipes has put the logo on its products after they undergo rigorous testing.
Although marketed as flushable, wipes should not be put down the toilet. They clog up drains and sewer systems, costing a lot of money, Orr said. Wastewater systems from Calgary to Fredericton, and Whitehorse to Halifax have been plugged up because people assume they can flush the wipes.
"The wipes industry is a $30-billion industry and it's growing exponentially," Orr said. "Stopping the confusion will save us and taxpayers a lot of money because we do see a lot of blockages occurring in pumps and in sewer lines and even in private residence drain connections."
Blair and Buiga have made it their mission to educate Londoners about the logo and remind people not to flush anything that's being marketed as safe for the drain.
"I have an interest in public global health," Blair said. "We got to go to the sewage plant and it's really disgusting what you can see. You can literally see the wipes that were not flushable sticking to the equipment."
