Britain’s latest ‘fatberg,’ a mass of grease and wet wipes in a sewer, is longer than 6...buses

washingtonpost. ^ | January 9 at 12:03 PM | Jennifer Hassan

[BenLurkin]

A “fatberg” — made up of grease, sanitary items, condoms and other waste products — is the term used to describe a solidified mass that lurks underneath sidewalks and in sewers, often causing blockages and damage that takes several weeks to resolve.

Longer than six double-decker buses, a 210-foot fatberg was discovered in Sidmouth, southwest England, last month. Described by South West Water as an “unwanted Christmas present,” the mass is expected to take eight weeks to destroy. Work to dissect the clump of filth is expected to commence in February, weather permitting.

Taking to Twitter, South West Water’s director of wastewater, Andrew Roantree, said of the discovery: “It is the largest discovered in our service history and will take our sewer team around eight weeks to dissect this monster in exceptionally challenging work conditions. Thankfully it has been identified in good time with no risk to bathing waters.”

In a video, Roantree appealed to residents, asking them to remember the “three Ps” when disposing of waste such as cooking oils and wet wipes.

“Only flush the three Ps: pee, paper and poo,” he said. “Anything else needs to go into the bin. The same applies in the kitchen.

[Blue Jays]

YUMMY!

[House Atreides]

“Only flush the three Ps: pee, paper and poo,” he said. “Anything else needs to go into the bin. The same applies in the kitchen.
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I agree with the last sentence. I’m amazed at the stuff I see folks grind up with their kitchen garbage disposals and send down the sink’s drain. It would be much better (and certainly much easier) to simply chuck it into the trash can or compost bin

[datricker]

No pee or poo in the kitchen sink please that’s just wrong

[doorgunner69]

As a kid after seeing the insane density of NYC, I wondered for decades how so many thousands living in ant hills could possibly have an adequate sewer system?

Visions of sewer pipes 10 feet in diameter, etc. Kids wonder about these things when seeing aberrations like NYC after visiting a grandparent still using an outhouse.

[oldasrocks]

When you cook fish and chips ya gotta pour the grease out someplace.

[yesthatjallen]

Work to dissect the clump of filth is expected to commence in February, weather permitting.

Weather permitting? Surely man-made global warming has made sewer work a year-round endeavor.

[mass55th]

Sometime last year I downloaded, and watched a British program on the autopsy of a fatberg in London. They found all sorts of stuff. Wet wipes were the worst culprits. They took a group of different brands and put them in liquid to see how long it would take for them to dissolve. Most of them wouldn't. They tested parts of the fatberg for drugs, and found a whole list of them. Also did microscopic analysis for various diseases, and it was not a pretty result.

Here's a link to the article about the show. There's a video to watch.

Fatberg autopsy: Stomach-churning TV show features 750m waste monster lurking beneath London

[wardaddy]

My father more or less made his relative fortune in sewage treatment and system mapping and ownership and installation

Houston

Metairie

Gatlinburg

Jackson Miss

San Juan

Birmingham ENG

LYON FR

Caracas before Commies

Dallas and Arlington and Mesquite

Ardmore and Chickasha

Birmingham and Montgomery

Rome Ga

St Pete and Jacksonville

Greenville Spartanburg

I know shite trust me....lol....been immersed in major lines....somebody had to do it

[867V309]

When you cook fish and chips ya gotta pour the grease out someplace.

I use empty coffee cans; throw them in the trash.

[House Atreides]

There’s money to be made in that shit.

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

Michael Moore was visiting London and fell into the sewer?

[redfreedom]

Oh this is a pleasant read before breakfast.

There are devices in American sewer collection systems called “bar screens”, which acts essentially as a filter. Solid objects, such as those sanitary goodies, are collected there so they do not plug the sewer system. As for the grease, a proper water flow should keep it suspended and flowing to the treatment plant.

My point is, it sounds like they have design issues.

Now if the sewer mains have flaws, such as collapsing or cracks allowing tree roots to enter, then they have maintenance issues.

Regardless, there’s no excuse for this.

[Albion Wilde]

Video: Whitechapel fatberg remnants from 130-tonne 'monster' go on display at Museum of London

[cymbeline]

They had to mention condoms.

[fruser1]

Get rid of those low flow toilets.

[ridesthemiles]

That is WHY you keep a can from another product to pour the grease into. Used to be a coffee can, but many coffee brands now come in plastic containers.

[dforest]

Oh man, so freaking gross. Ima gonna vomit now.

[hal ogen]

I call BS on this article. I bet it really was some sort of conference of LIBs/DIMs and rinos.