You may think that once you rinse something down your drain that it is gone forever, but of course this is not true. While you may have rinsed or flushed your “problem” away, this problem can spell trouble somewhere down the pipeline.
Though wastewater treatment removes many pollutants, trace amounts of some substances can persist through the treatment process, with unknown or harmful effects on your community’s water supply.
Here are some potential sources of pollutants lurking in and around your home:
Fats, oils and grease
Fats, oils and grease can block sewer lines, causing raw sewage to back up at home and into the streets. Scrape cooking fats, oils and grease into the garbage.
Gardening products
Look for less-toxic alternatives for fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. Never pour gardening products down any indoor or outdoor drain, and be careful to never apply them before a storm.
Dispose of medicines safely
Did you know that when you flush your unused medicines down the toilet, they cannot be fully removed by traditional wastewater treatment processes? The best way to safely get rid of your expired and unwanted medicines is to discard them at a designated collection site or return them to your pharmacy.
Mercury
Dispose of mercury-containing items such as thermometers or compact fluorescent bulbs at household hazardous waste collection centers. Check your community’s municipal web pages to find out more about how to dispose of such items safely.
Non-flushable wipes and products
No matter if the label says “disposable” or “flushable,” household cleaning and personal hygiene products should never be flushed. “Disposable” or “flushable” wipes and other products don’t break down in the sewer. Instead, they get tangled and clumped in hair and debris creating massive obstructions in the sewers. Remember, your toilet is not a trash can! Don’t flush items such as wipes, sanitary napkins, diapers, rags, towels, hair, cigarette butts, kitty litter and doggy waste bags.
Paint, motor oil and other household hazardous waste
Do not dispose of household chemicals, such as paint, paint thinner, pesticides, fertilizers or automotive fluids (new or used), down the drain. Take these items to a household hazardous waste collection center. Check your community’s municipal web pages to find out more about how to dispose of such items safely.
