Monster 80 Metre Fatberg Found in Liverpool Sewer
Apr 04, 2019
A 90-tonne bung of congealed fat is set to be hacked out of a Liverpool sewer by hand. The 80 metre-long blockage of congealed fats, oils and other nasties under Birchall Street wouldn’t budge with traditional high powered water jets.
So a team of hardy United Utilities sewer engineers are taking on the stomach-churning job the old fashioned way – using picks and shovels. It’s expected to take up to eight weeks of painstaking chipping before the rock hard fat is fully removed.
Sam Fox from United Utilities said “We tried to clear the fatberg by jetting it with high pressure water, but this has not worked. We are now having to turn to pickaxes and shovels as we dig down onto the sewer so we can manually dig out the blockage.” Once the chunks of fatberg have been removed they will be sent away for recycling into biofuel.
Fat in sewage has been a gradually increasing problem as diet and lifestyles have evolved. Over the past three to four decades, the increase in fat, oil and grease in sewage initially caused “fat balls” in sewage and as these grew larger in size, they have been recently described as fatbergs.
The problem of fatbergs was simply not anticipated when James Newlands became Liverpool and Britain’s first Borough Engineer and developed the world’s earliest sewerage system in Liverpool. This is because the diet of the citizens of 19th century Liverpool was significantly different to what we consume today. As fatty and fast food consumption has increased, so has the fat in the drains beneath our feet.
“The total cost of removing this fatberg will be in excess of £100k and each year we tackle around 28,000 blockages in the sewers which serve the North West, costing around £10 million. There are lots of simple ways to safely dispose of leftover fat or grease, like letting it cool in a container and making sure you only put the “three Ps” down your toilet - pee, poo and paper“ added Sam.
The UK water industry currently spends up to £100 million a year clearing blockages caused by inappropriate items being put down the drains, with customers footing the bill through their sewerage charges.
More News and Articles
Apr 24, 2024
News
Sustainable drainage solutions: German Start-up transforms urban water management.
Germany boasts a well-established infrastructure for managing rainwater and wastewater, yet many developing countries lack such systems. Addressing this gap, …
Apr 22, 2024
News
HDD tooling that gets the job done
Horizontal directional drilling is a dynamic process that constantly changes and adapts to suit a range of applications across utilities and infrastructure. Operators looking to get the most from their equipment …
Apr 19, 2024
News
WATCH: Overnight with SAERTEX-LINER H20 in São Paulo
Available through Pipe Core, high-quality liner SAERTEX-LINER H20 performed under pressure in São Paulo, Brazil.
Maintaining aging potable water pipe infrastructure is a constant challenge …
Apr 17, 2024
News
Immersive media provides wastewater experience in Denmark
An immersive media experience (IMX) may not be what most people want when they think about industrial wastewater, but that is exactly what visitors can expect when they visit a new installation …
Apr 15, 2024
News
Spotlight on gender diversity at Pipe Core
Since founding in 2008, Pipe Core’s team has grown across all areas of the business and is now in a position where there are more females than males across the organisation. Research published in Harvard …
Apr 12, 2024
News
New Wave of Startups Scale Innovation to Solve Global Water Challenges
Innovators from Around the World Join Xylem’s 2024 Accelerator Program to Deploy Breakthrough Innovations for Utilities and Industrial Users of Water
A new group of startups …
Apr 08, 2024
News
Integrated sustainable electricity and clean drinking water systems
Altitude Water and New Use Energy Solutions have partnered to create integrated, mobile solar-plus-water generation systems that produce sustainable electricity and clean drinking …
Apr 05, 2024
News
How to Evaluate Hydraulic Fracture Risk in HDD Design
The design of horizontal directional drill (HDD) installations often requires an evaluation of the potential for hydraulic fracture of the soil layers through which an HDD passes. Evaluating …
Apr 02, 2024
News
Historic Project Linking Rome and Vatican City Uses Advanced Technology and Local Knowledge to Keep Water Flowing
Relocation of Major Sewer Infrastructure Enables Construction of Pedestrian Link for 35 Million Visitors to the 2025 Jubilee
Water …
Mar 27, 2024
News
USU Study Looks at Water Main Break Rates in the U.S. and Canada
Report Highlights Correlation Between Material and Diameter
Utah State University (USU) has published new research on water main breaks in the United States and Canada, examining …
Mar 26, 2024
News
Update BE-21: New Material in Course and Modules on Trenchless Pipe Installation
Online training on the topic of pipeline installation in civil engineering: Trenchless technology for underground drainage construction can be a resource-efficient, …
Mar 25, 2024
Article
Bacteria as a new weapon in wastewater treatment
In early November, San Diego based startup Aquacycl officially opened its first European office and test center at the Water Campus in Leeuwarden. The Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA) …
Contact
United Utilities Group PLC
Haweswater House, Lingley Mere Business Park, Lingley Green Avenue, Great Sankey
WA5 3LP Warrington
United Kingdom
Phone:
+44 1925 23 7000
Fax:
+44 345 070 2058