Sewer Pollution Q & A
Pollution of the sewers or stormwater system is caused by people putting the wrong things into them.
The wrong things are Fat, Oil and Grease (called FOG), and Sewer Litter.
| What are FOG and Sewer Litter? |
FOG
is created by cooking, either at a restaurant, cafe, or food manufacturer, or at home. 
The "F" and "O" are the Fat and Oil used for frying. The "G" is the Grease that comes out of meat, however it is cooked. FOG made in restaurants and factories is collected in "fat traps", and then taken away for turning into something useful. FOG made in homes by householders is usually poured down the sink into the sewers. Sewer Litter is our term for the solid and the liquid non-human stuff that people dump in the sewers. Examples are cotton bud sticks, sanitary products, and medicines. |
| What is this website concerned with? | This website is not concerned with the Sewer Pollution created by businesses.
That is already controlled by law and checked by inspectors. We are concerned with the pollution caused by householders, which we call Household Sewer Pollution. |
| What harm does Sewer Pollution do? |
FOG sticks to the piping of the drains and sewers or septic tanks. Just on its own, it can build up and block a pipe. But then pieces of Sewer Litter stick to the FOG, FOG sticks to that, Sewer Litter sticks to the FOG, on so on. FOG and Sewer Litter together build a better blockage, one like a beaver's dam of mud and sticks. When there is a blockage of a sewer pipe then "untreated" sewage, together with FOG and Sewer Litter, escapes from the sewer and gets washed down into the nearest stream or river. |
| How is Sewer Pollution handled? |
The Sewerage System collects all the water and other stuff from your toilet, shower, all your sinks,
and your gully traps.
It goes down to the Treatment Plant. There it is commonly put into open "ponds" for special bacteria to feed on it. When the bacteria have finished with it, it is said to be "treated" and not dangerous to people or the environment. It is then pumped out into the river or sea. The Septic Tank collects all the water and other stuff from your toilet, shower, all your sinks, and your gully traps. The water flows on to the soak-away area. The rest stays in the tank while bacteria feed on it. Later the solids are pumped out. Sewage should only contain human waste and toilet paper, plus the water used for washing yourself, your clothes, your food and your cooking things, and in cleaning the inside of the house. Nothing else. 
Cotton bud sticks, sanitary products, nappies, razor blades, food scraps and …
everything else, should not be in there. Once these items are in the drains, they have to be removed by filtering the sewage through "screens" at the Treatment Plant. The bits are carefully bagged, then taken to the landfill. If they were not removed they would all go into the river or sea, and the shore would be covered with disgusting rubbish. Filtering is difficult and expensive to do. Small and thin objects can get through the filters. They get into the river or sea and some end up on the shore. |
| How is Stormwater Pollution handled? |
The Stormwater System collects the water from your roof, your paths and driveway, and from the roads. Anything you put into the stormwater drains, such as engine oil or soapy water, is pollution. The water is never filtered. It is never "treated". The pipes simply go to a nearby stream or river. It all then goes into the sea. |