A huge mass of used wet wipes has formed an 'island' that has changed the course of (the Thames)

[sl8]

https://www.businessinsider.nl/a-huge-mass-of-used-wet-wipes-has-formed-an-island-that-has-changed-the-course-of-englands-second-longest-river-mp-says/

A huge mass of used wet wipes has formed an ‘island’ that has changed the course of England’s second longest river, MP says

Alia Shoaib
02 jul 2022

• A huge mass of wet wipes has formed in the Thames in London, changing the course of the river.

• The "wet wipe island" is the size of two tennis courts.

• Ministers are urging the public to not flush wet wipes, and are considering a ban on those that contain plastic.

A "wet wipe island" the size of two tennis courts has formed in the Thames, causing the river as it flows through London to change course, according to The Times of London.

[...]

[PJMcK]

1. But the labels claim they're "flushable"

Many cities have sewage blockages because of the massive amounts of diaper wipes flushed into their systems.

"Flushable," my ass.

[TreasonousBastard]

2. It's not your ass causing the problem.

[Emrys]

3. The "flushable" wet wipes are very much in the minority.

Most of those currently sold (in the UK, at least) are either entirely plastic or contain enough not to be biodegradeable - estimates are about 90% - and this has been raised in parliament with a view to outlawing them.

I use them, and ensure the ones I buy are biodegradeable, but then we have a septic tank, so I bear the burden of any blockages directly and vividly.

More details about the problem, which has gotten worse during the COVID pandemic, here:

Wet wipes: What makes them so bad for the environment and why are there calls for a ban?
https://www.itv.com/news/2021-11-02/what-makes-wet-wipes-bad-for-the-environment-and-why-are-there-calls-for-a-ban

Why on earth an inherently single-use product needs the inclusion of plastic to make it more durable - indeed, all but indestructable - is beyond me. I cant think of a use where a paper-based version wouldn't do the job.

It's like tea bags - most of them aren't easily compostable because they incorporate a fine mesh of plastic to stop them breaking up in use. In a conventional compost heap, you'll be left with a fine webby residue that just won't break down and has to be removed by hand if you don't want your soil littered with microplastic. They also release nanoplastics into your cup of tea. Only relatively recently have biodegradeable tea bags become available.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

6. You really don't see why?

"Why on earth an inherently single-use product needs the inclusion of plastic to make it more durable - indeed, all but indestructable - is beyond me"

They're called 'wet wipes'. They are wet when put in the package, right?

Are you unfamiliar with the effects of water on plain paper products?

Throw a roll of TP in a sink full of water and then try to wipe yourself with that roll.

Not saying people should be flushing them (due to these plastics) but it's seemingly obvious why something 'durable' (not just paper) has to be included in the formulation of the wipe

[Emrys]

7. What a puzzlingly patronizing and unhelpful post.

I use biodegradeable wet wipes. They are indeed basically paper and water.

Against seemingly all the odds, the manufacturers have come up with a formulation that does what it says on the pack - wet wipes that are functional at the point of need, and are then biodegradeable and flushable without lasting ill effects on the environment. They stay intact in the pack until after I've used them, then they disperse visibly in the bowl in a way that doesn't clog our septic tank, and hence presumably are more sewer-friendly.

In an astounding further advance of science, some manufacturers have also come up with tea bags that don't disintegrate in the cup or tea pot without the need for the addition of nanoplastics that will probably endure until the human race is run or thereabouts.

It's not rocket science.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

8. My bad ... I'd imagine that they're considerably more expensive

and manufacturers are using plastic to meet a price point.

Didn't mean to imply this is impossible outright.

One thing you didn't mention ... do they work as well? Last as long in the packaging, never tear when you use them, etc?

I'm sure there's a number of logical reasons in play why these type of wipes still exist.

[Emrys]

9. OK. Sorry if I sounded grouchy there.

As I said, we have a septic tank (rare in our area, could be bypassed since a local sewer upgrade, but it's never been done), so I have grisly and hard-won only too close-up experience of what happens when a septic tank clogs - which has happened to us too often in the past, and I've reckoned the non-degradeable (for 100 years or so at least) plastic-containing wipes have caused most of the problems.

After much hunting around (and this isn't meant as an advert, other brands may be as good), I've found Andrex Washlets the best for starting to break up as soon as they hit the pan. For visible solubility, they compare with most toilet tissue. They're no more expensive than other brands and formulations. They may be a tad more, let's say, "delicate" in their use, but nothing a little at least daily practice and finesse can't compensate for perfectly happily. They'd certainly be able to clean a hard surface with no problems.

So if it can be done with those sorts of wipes (water isn't their only additive, but it's the main one) - which, let's face it, endure what are at times very challenging applications - I can't see why it can't be done for other sorts of wipes.

I think one reason why this hasn't been addressed earlier is that we're only just waking up to the presence and harm of nanoplastics in the environment, and also these types of wipes have grown more popular for reasons of convenience and perhaps from a heightened, if sometimes misplaced, sense of "hygiene". People used to flush newspaper (in some places, no doubt still do), but our conurbations and their sewer systems have grown larger over the years, along with the demands on them, so the problems multiply.

[sl8]

4. Exactly. Technically true, but misleading as hell.nt

[intheflow]

5. Wait. Do toilets in England go directly into the Thames?

I would think this sort of non-biodegradable trash would be culled in a waste processing plant.

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. Not all the time, but they do in heavy rainfall, or when blockages happen

Exclusive: water firms discharged raw sewage into England's rivers 200,000 times in 2019

The figures, obtained via environmental information requests, trace releases of sewage from storm drains in rivers across England by all nine water companies and provide a comprehensive picture of the scale of pollution from what critics say is the routine dumping of untreated sewage.
...
Countries are legally obliged to treat sewage before it is released into waterways. Discharges of untreated human waste are permitted only in “exceptional circumstances” for example after extreme rainfall, the European court of justice has ruled.

But the scale of the sewage releases in 2019 reveals what one industry insider said was the frequent and routine nature of discharging untreated effluent from storm overflows.
...
He said the industry had for years ignored warnings about the growing scale of spills from combined sewer overflows (CSOs) – storm pipes that allow rainwater, untreated sewage and runoff to discharge into waterways.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jul/01/water-firms-raw-sewage-england-rivers

Combined Sewer Overflows Explained

England has a combined sewage system made up of hundreds of thousands of kilometres of sewers, built by the Victorians, in many urban centres. This means that clean rainwater and waste water from toilets, bathrooms and kitchens are conveyed in the same pipe to a sewage treatment works.

During heavy rainfall the capacity of these pipes can be exceeded, which means possible inundation of sewage works and the potential to back up and flood peoples’ homes, roads and open spaces, unless it is allowed to spill elsewhere. Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) were developed as overflow valves to reduce the risk of sewage backing up during heavy rainfall.

Overflows of diluted sewage during heavy rainfall are not a sign that the system is faulty. Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) are a necessary part of the existing sewerage system, preventing sewage from flooding homes and businesses.
...
CSOs can discharge through misuse of the system. Wet wipes make up more than 90 per cent of the material causing sewers to block. We work with partners to raise awareness of this issue and the need to reduce the pressure put on the sewerage system through the #BinIt4Beaches campaigns.

https://environmentagency.blog.gov.uk/2020/07/02/combined-sewer-overflows-explained/

[intheflow]

11. Thanks for the links!