The answer is they were some of the contents in a giant sewer blockage found in the small town of Sidmouth, in England (population circa 13,000). The blockage measured an amazing 210 ft (64 metres) the equivalent of 5 double decker buses lined up. The name given to these monstrosities by the water companies is ‘Fat bergs’, giant masses of fat, wet wipes, nappies and all the other lovely material that ends up amassing in the sewers and blocking them up. I don’t know about you but for me it conjures up images of the iceberg that sunk The Titanic but only this ‘berg’ isn’t made of ice! One of the most famous (or infamous!) fat bergs found was in Whitechapel, London weighing in at a hefty 286,600lb (130 tonnes) and 820ft long (250m). To give you some perspective it is roughly the same weight as a blue whale and the length of two football pitches! It was even given a name ‘Fatty McFatberg’. For anyone with a morbid curiosity a small part of it is on display at the museum of London and there is even a ‘Fat Cam’. So if you are unable to go see it in person you can watch the fatberg in real time (link is below for those of you who are into that kind of thing, no judging!!)
Water UK found that more than 93% of sewer blockages involved wipes. Over 90% of wipes sold in the UK are non-flushable. So, if you do use wipes and let’s face it, if you don’t use them to remove your makeup you probably use other types of wipes for cleaning your baby’s bottom or for the house. PLEASE do not throw them down the toilet. Bin it. Don’t flush it.
If fat bergs don’t convince you to ditch at least the makeup wipes, then consider that they take 100 years to decompose in landfill. The market for wipes in the US alone is worth $3.2 billion and 22 million Americans use wipes at least 31 times a week. A staggering 11 billion wipes are thrown away in the UK. It is said that there are an estimated 14,000 wet wipes used every second. Then add to this fact for us sensitive souls with delicate skin (like me), face wipes contain chemicals which can leave your skin feeling dry and anything but peachy and clean. What are you waiting for? Make the change to reusable where possible and where it is not possible put them in the bin. Put the fatbergs on a much-needed diet. Stop feeding the fatbergs!
Much Love
CocoBabbit
P.s as promised the link to the live webcam footage of the fatberg in London is below (don’t worry I won’t tell anyone you peeked!).
Photo by Hubert Neufeld on Unsplash
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