SOMERSET NEWS: Remember Wessex Water’s 3 Ps for flushing – paper, poo and pee!

WESSEX Water is calling on customers across Somerset to think twice about flushing wet wipes down the loo.

The advice comes after a recent survey by the Marine Conservation Society revealed that the number of wet wipes found on UK beaches had increased by more than 50% in a year.

Wessex Water said it deals with around 13,000 blocked sewers a year costing £5m to clear with wet wipes being the main problem.

The company’s head of wastewater strategy, Matt Wheeldon, said: “Wet wipes don’t disintegrate in the same way as toilet paper, despite many manufacturers including the word ‘flushable’ on the packaging.

“The problem is only getting worse, so that is why we are reminding customers to bin wet wipes and only flush the three Ps: paper, poo and pee.”

Wessex Water has written to supermarkets and manufacturers to raise concern about how wet wipes are currently being marketed.

Mr Wheeldon said: “We have seen an increase in the number of products on the market. These include the traditional baby wet wipes as well as facial wipes and cleaning wipes.

“Flushing wet wipes down the toilet can cause blockages often further down the system and in worse case scenarios lead to pollution incidents, affecting the environment, including beaches. Not only is it unpleasant, but the clean-up costs and damage caused can be significant.

“If everyone follows our advice and puts wipes in the bin, we can all do our bit to reduce the number of blockages to protect homes and the local environment.”

The Marine Conservation Society said the number of wet wipes more than doubled between 2013 and 2014. It also revealed that 35 wipes were found for every kilometre of beach.

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