Dublin Road & Shankill Road Fatberg

26 June 2017 9:59

Fast food might be appealing at the weekend, however, dealing with the after effects of Fat, Oil and Grease being poured into the sewers is not a ‘fast job’.

 

NI Water are currently undertaking a massive project on the Dublin Road, Belfast, clearing Fat, Oil and Grease (FOG) that has built up from locals pouring fat into the sewers rather than using grease traps and binning it. 

 

Gavin McCready, Networks Sewerage Manager explains, “The Dublin road houses a number of fast food outlets, therefore the problem of FOG in the sewers is significant in this area.  While most businesses use grease traps and bin their waste correctly, those that don’t are contributing to a massive fatberg in the sewers around the area.    Our team has been on the site, working over a number of Sunday mornings, clearing the fat that has solidified.  This is labour intensive work that can only be done early in the morning before the traffic builds up. 

 

“We also recently discovered another fatberg on the Shankill Road which was so big, it rose to the top of the sewer and had been imprinted with the manhole!

 

“We would appeal to all our customers, especially food outlets, to dispose of their FOG appropriately. For householders, let it cool and then put it into the bin. Alternatively, pour it into a disposable container and take it to your local oil bank.

 

“Businesses also risk blocking their own drainage systems, which results in extra costs being incurred in clean-up efforts. These fat blockages can not only result in out of sewer flooding, but odour problems and the risk of rat infestations both near and beyond your premises. Ways to dispose of FOG include fitting a grease trap, using an enzyme dosing system or recycling it.  

 

“Recent research carried out showed that 96% of people were surprised by how much impact they could have on blockages. A further 49% thought it was mainly NI Water’s responsibility to reduce blockages.

 

“We are doing our part by investing in the network, however, we will never win this battle alone; upgrading sewers will not stop blockages if the public are going to continue flushing inappropriate items such as wipes and disposing of FOG down the drain. We need the support of the public and businesses to dispose of these items properly.”

 

In the last two years NI Water has spent over £5 million clearing blockages from the sewer system for which 70-80% were caused by FOG and inappropriate items.

 

Click here to view a video of the 'Fatberg' being removed

 

A leaflet detailing everything which should be binned and not flushed, can be found at www.niwater.com.

 

ENDS

 

All media enquiries to NI Water press office on press.office@niwater.com or 02890 357695