Only flush the ‘three Ps’ down the toilet, local people reminded

PEOPLE in Shetland are being reminded to only flush the three Ps down the loo – pee, poo and toilet paper – as part of a national awareness raising campaign.

Lerwick Community Council was given a presentation from Scottish Water about its ‘Nature Calls’ campaign at its meeting on Monday night.

A key message is to limit the chance of blocking pipes by not flushing wet wipes down the toilet.

The overarching aim of Nature Calls is to raise awareness around blocked drains, which can lead to pollution in the sea and coastline.

Around 80 per cent of blockages in Scotland are caused by items that are not meant to be flushed down the toilet.

The waste water drain which runs from a home to the public sewer is usually about 10cm wide.

Gavin Steel, who works in Scottish Water’s corporate affairs team, said that the Shetland team on average deals with around 200 sewer “chokes” a year.

Half of these are in the ZE1 postcode areas.

Steel said there has been a downward trend in the last decade for sewer chokes in Shetland, but “process has stalled in recent years”.

The campaign also is looking to support a ban on wipes containing plastic.

Lerwick Community Council members said they were happy to lend their support to the campaign.

More information on Nature Calls can be found online.