Anglian Water’s ‘Just Bin It’ campaign has seen a 41% reduction in so called ‘unflushables’, such as wet wipes, in one of Anglian Water’s blockage hotspots of Peterborough, helping to reduce sewer blockages and pollutions.

According to Anglian Water data, a trend of blockage incidents in Peterborough was identified over a five-year period due to a build-up of unflushables. Each household in the area received a letter reminding them to only flush the three Ps: pee, poo and (toilet) paper, while behaviour reminder signs have been installed in the area and messaging has been shared through social media.

Spiky devices resembling hedgehogs are helping to change flushing behaviours in the area – the devices were placed in the area’s sewer pipes, catching and counting the number of wipes and other unflushables.

If left ignored, the unflushables could have led to more serious issues in the network, such as sewage backing up into homes and businesses. By proactively clearing the sewer network, alongside regular behaviour change communications to customers, Anglian Water is reducing the volume of unflushables in the network, keeping sewers flowing and avoiding blockages, flooding and pollutions.

To demonstrate the scale of the problem, wet well cleans at Orton Pumping Station in Peterborough removed 81 tonnes of unflushables over the last 13 months - roughly 1.5 tonnes a week. This was from over 8,500 domestic properties and over 90 commercial properties that feed into the wet well from the Orton area.

Connor Brailsford, Sewer Misuse Programme Manager at Anglian Water, said:

“The Just Bin It campaign is about more than clearing blockages, it is about working with communities like those in Peterborough to prevent problems before they happen. We want to thank the communities for playing their part by making small behaviour changes at home that are keeping sewers flowing, protecting homes from flooding and reducing the risk of pollution.”

However, he went on to caution:

“We welcome the change in the law next year to remove plastic from the manufacture of wet wipes, however there are lots of exemptions to the new rules, meaning they will still be in circulation.

"Even plastic free wipes can still block the sewers, meaning the important thing is not to flush them at all. “

Anglian Water teams remove more than 2,800 tonnes of unflushables per annum

Around half a million wet wipes are flushed into sewers across the East of England every day and every year Anglian Water teams remove more than 2,800 tonnes of unflushables and other rubbish from sewers. When mixed with fats, oils, grease and other rubbish, they can form huge blockages and ‘fatbergs’ beneath the streets.

This is the cause of around eight in ten sewer flooding incidents and two thirds of all pollution incidents across the region, says Anglian Water.

Around 80% of sewer blockages are preventable, which is why the Just Bin It campaign focuses on stopping these items entering the sewer network in the first place.