A staggering 250 tonnes of fat from roast turkey dinners is expected to go down Anglian Water’s customer’s drains during Christmas – the equivalent to nearly a million blocks of butter.
This year around 40 per cent of households are expected to choose turkey this Christmas which, in Anglian Water’s waste water region, means over 954,000 turkeys.
Each average bird produces approximately 250g of waste fats oils and grease which would fill 12 petrol tankers to the brim – the equivalent of 2.5 million miles worth of travelling – or over 100 times round the world.
Anglian Water is reminding its customers not to put waste fats oils and grease down the sink. Instead allow fats to cool and solidify and then dispose of them in the bin.
Paul Gibbs ,director of wastewater at Anglian Water, said:
“Many people still don’t realise the harmful effects of pouring fats, oils and greases down the sink. They solidify quickly when they hit the cool walls of the sewer and stick to the side. Over time this builds up preventing the normal flow of waste water and debris from passing through. With no way through, the wastewater backs up in the system, coming out of drains and sewers and potentially your home. No one wants to suffer the consequences of raw sewage flooding their gardens, driveways or worst still, inside their homes.“
Anglian Water spends over £1.25million clearing blockages in sewers a year – one fifth of them caused by a build-up of fats, oils and grease.