Holiday Fats, Oils and Grease Can Clog Sewer Drains

This is a press release from the City of Arcata:

The City of Arcata encourages residents to properly dispose of cooking grease this holiday season and all year long. Many people celebrate the holidays by preparing traditional holiday feasts including turkey, ham, gravy, stuffing and desserts. As delicious as these foods may be, they are prepared with fats, oils, butter and grease which can wreak havoc on drains and the City’s waste water system if not disposed of properly.

When residents pour fats, oils or grease down a sink or toilet, it increases the chances for clogged drains resulting in costly plumbing problems or sanitary sewer overflows. Sanitary sewer overflows are a public health concern and can cause serious environmental issues.

“City crews will respond to correct sanitary sewer overflows,” says Mark André, Director of the City’s Environmental Services Department, “but prevention is always the best course of action, and proper disposal of fats, oils and grease will avoid many plumbing and sewer problems.”

Our Environmental Services Department has some tips for all residents to help avoid clogging sewer drains with holiday fats, oils and grease:

  • Avoid pouring cooking grease down the sink or toilet.
  • Avoid placing food that contains fat, oil and grease into the garbage disposal.
  • Wipe greasy dishes and pots with a paper towel or napkin to absorb cooking oil before washing them in the sink.
  •  Scrape vegetable scraps from dishes for composting, and scrape greasy food residue into the garbage prior to washing dishes in the sink.
  • Cooled and solidified cooking grease or oil should be placed in a sealed container and stored in the freezer until it has hardened, and then, put in a solid waste garbage bin. Alternatively, pour fats and oils into cat litter until it is absorbed and dispose the litter into the trash.
  • Large amounts of fats and grease can be disposed of at the Humboldt Waste Management Authority’s Household Hazardous Waste collection facility, located at 1059 West Hawthorne Street in Eureka. They are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for residents and by appointment for businesses.

To report sanitary sewer overflows and for more information regarding fat, oil and grease disposal and proper disposal of Household Hazardous Waste, please call the Environmental Services Department at 707-822-8184.

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4 Comments
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Hick
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Hick
4 years ago

Fatbergs! Actually a real term.

Wundrbar
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Wundrbar
4 years ago

Also, don’t flush kitty litter down your toilet. Try using the innovative litter systems that use permanent litter like Tidy Cats Breeze or the Cat-illac Cat Toilet. With these systems you never have to buy or change litter again and stop filling our sewers and landfill sites with millions of tons of litter. Although the Breeze system uses litter pads that need to be replaced, the Cat-illac system uses a large holding tank that you just pour into your toilet. These are very easy to use and I highly recommend them.

https://www.cat-illac.com/

Bushytails
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Bushytails
4 years ago

Toss the grease, and the paper towels used to wipe it, in the woodstove… better than kindling.

50% coronary artery disease rate
Guest
50% coronary artery disease rate
4 years ago

Clogs drains

And arteries