Who needs Halloween when you’ve got Unblocktober?

October is no longer just the month of Halloween – it’s also Unblocktober (you heard it here first!).

 

 

 

 

A fatberg is a large mass of solid waste in a sewerage system, made up of all sorts including cotton buds, sanitary products, congealed fats – all of which has just been flushed down the toilet. These can cause some serious blockages and have resulted in the Lanes Group alone having to work on between 400 and 600 fatberg related drainage issues each month! These blockages can lead to flooding, pollution and, public health problems when foul water ends up on streets and in homes. Sounds gross right? Well in 2017, a gigantic 130 tonne, 250-metre-long fatberg was found in the sewer under Whitechapel in London. So, it’s something that’s affecting us as we speak and we’re just none the wiser.

Unblocktober, led by Lanes Group, is encouraging us Brits to make small changes to our bathroom and kitchen habits for the month of October in a bid to help protect the environment. In just less than a month, there has already been over 1,000 people sign up to take part.

Unblocktober participants will promise not to put the following down their toilets or sinks: 

• Cooking oil – pre- or post-cooking
• Margarine
• Butter
• Lard
• Cooking sauces and condiments
• Food - even crumbs
• Wet wipes
• Tampons, applicators and wrappers
• Sanitary/menstrual pads and towels
• Nappies
• Condoms
• Cotton buds
• Contact lenses
• Bandages and plasters
• Razor blades
• Dental floss

By taking part in Unblocktober, and changing our habits ever so slightly, we could help reduce these fatbergs!

And, if it’s numbers, you’re after, we’ve got all the evidence to prove that us Brits throw all sorts down the loo. According to a national survey, Lanes Group found that 46% of women have flushed tampons down the toilet and 20% of men have been guilty of flushing the odd condom. 48% of us are even throwing wet wipes down the toilet – c’mon guys surely, we’re not that lazy that we can’t just go find a bin! Last year alone 180,000,000 cotton buds were flushed down the toilet – that’s insane! And if your mind isn’t blown enough, 8 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the ocean every year, harming marine life and destroying their home.

Here at Alpha, we’re all taking part in Unblocktober – so why not join us? Let’s make a difference together!

For more information on how you can take part, click here.