Wipes Clog Pipes

Wipes clog pipes—please don’t flush them! Photo by Lauren Sopher. © Lake Champlain Committee.

As we all work to address the Covid-19 pandemic, keep in mind that wipes clog pipes, even if they are marketed as “flushable.” Click here to read the New York Times article about backed-up sewer lines in the wake of the coronavirus.You can also read LCC’s Clean Lake Tip, Dodge the Clogs, to learn more about how wastewater treatment and septic systems are designed to handle the four Ps—pee, poop, puke, and (toilet) paper—and nothing else. Please don’t flush wipes, paper towels, tissues or anything but the four Ps down the toilet. Toilet paper is designed to breakdown and dissolve in water but that’s not the case for wipes and other paper products. Cleaning up the clogs is time consuming, expensive and puts wastewater treatment personnel at risk because of pathogens in the waste stream. It’s a team effort to keep our waterbodies clean!