HOW MUCH DO 'FATBERGS' COST THE PUBLIC?
Fatbergs – congealed fat which clumps together with other waste products to form concrete-style blocks – are becoming increasingly problematic in sewers across the UK, particularly in London.
The capital's largest ever recorded fatberg, weighing in at 15 tonnes, was found in Kingston in August 2013.
And in 2015 workers spent four days removing a fatberg the length of a jumbo jet from a sewer in Shepherd's Bush.
In Bedfordshire a line of fatbergs clogged a 100-metre-long pipeline in 2016. Anglian Water had to ship in a specialist robot (pictured) with a high-pressured jet from Holland to blast the fatbergs so they would gradually disperse
Among the most common causes of drain blockages are make-up and nappy wipes, fat and grease, chewing gum, dental floss, plasters and building debris.
Staff from Thames Water usually use powerful suction equipment to break down the blockages and then high-powered water jets to clear the tunnels.
The company spends approximately £1 million a month clearing fatbergs and blockages, dealing with 55,000 of them every year. It is a similar story for other water companies across the UK.
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