A mile-long giant fatberg blocks a Birmingham sewer.
The blockage would be over a meter high and weigh around 300 tons, according to Severn Trent, and obstruct the sewer in the Hodge Hill area of the city.
The company believes it’s one of the biggest it has ever had to remove, saying it could take up to next month to clear.
Fatbergs are caused by non-biodegradable waste, such as wet wipes and cooking oils, which are flushed through the waste system, creating a solid, immovable mass.
Severn Trent has been alerted to the blockage by sensors in the sewer system monitoring rising water levels.
This is just one of the thousands of blockages the company says it has faced over the past year, three-quarters of which are caused by improper use of the sewer system.
Scott Burgin, Director of Operations at Severn Trent, said: “This is a huge project and it is not yet resolved.
“This giant lump is the result of everyone occasionally washing and rinsing bad things down the drain, not realizing the impact it has.
“The problem is that unlike toilet paper, wipes and other invisible products, including diapers and sanitary products, don’t break or dissolve, so they easily get stuck in drains and sewers, and then s ‘attach to cooking oil and fat to create a fatberg.
“Our advice is to always let leftover cooking fat cool, before throwing it in the trash and only rinse the three Ps (pee, poo and toilet paper) and throw away everything else.
“These relatively small changes can make a big difference and hopefully prevent any future fatbergs.”
The company added that it had apologized for the disruption that could be caused by the work in progress.
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Source: news.sky.com
This notice was published: 2021-05-01 07:17:00
