These unflushable items are wreaking havoc on the city’s sanitary sewer systems and costing residents tens of thousands of dollars every year.

Some of the items that people have attempted to flush recently include mop heads, diapers, pants, belts, rags, hairballs, and even lumber.

“This is a daily problem,” said Fabbro, the city’s water utilities manager.. “It costs the city several hundred thousand dollars a year in labor hours and equipment, and similar amounts at the wastewater treatment plant to screen out and remove things which belong in the trash, not down the toilet.”

Just because an item’s packaging says it’s flushable doesn’t mean that it actually is. According to Fabbro, flushable wipes do not biodegrade quickly and are one of the many items clogging sanitary sewer systems and mains. Other items that are commonly flushed and causing problems include diapers, dental floss and flosser picks, feminine hygiene products, condoms and other forms of birth control, Q-tips, Swiffer pads, rags, and mop heads.

-Submitted photo
A large hair and root ball was recently pulled from a sanitary sewer service in Fort Dodge. Items that belong in the trash instead of being flushed down the toilet are clogging up services, mains, and the city’s wastewater treatment plant.

“If it belongs in the trash, then that is where it needs to go,” said Fabbro. “Nearly all sewer backups that we report to are on the customers’ sewer service line and not on our sewer main, and are because people are putting too many solids or inorganic, non-biodegradable waste down their much smaller sewer service.”

It’s not just residents’ sanitary sewer services that are affected by what they’re flushing, either. According to Fabbro, there are dozens of sewage lift pump stations throughout Fort Dodge and these non-flushable items are clogging those sewage pumps. The obstructions not only cost the city in labor and equipment to fix, but also shorten the pumps’ lifespan.

“Fats, oils, and greases belong in the trash,” said Fabbro. “Scrape your plates, pots, and pans, and wipe up the grease with a paper towel and then place it in the trash can. Anything that cannot quickly biodegrade will ultimately end up in a trash can and eventually in the landfill, either by our sewer collection crews or at the wastewater treatment plant screening process.”

Do not flush!

Diapers

Flushable wipes

Dental floss, flosser picks

Feminine hygiene products

Condoms, forms of birth control

Q-tips

Swiffer pads

Rags

Mop heads