Just like our arteries can get clogged with fat and grease, so can our sewer lines, which leads to what the City of Saskatoon calls Irritable Sewer Syndrome.

The City has begun an education campaign about what is and is not to be flushed down toilets and rinsed down sinks to reduce the number of blockages. On average, the City cleans out between 3 and 4-thousand service lines a year.

Director of Water and Waste Operations, Russ Munro, says they have found many strange things in the sewer from construction materials to propane tanks, but the most common culprits are grease and flushable wipes. He advises that food scraps and coffee grounds shouldn’t go down the drain and baby wipes, diapers and other personal hygiene products shouldn’t be flushed, even if they say they are flushable.
Your pharmaceuticals should be returned to the drug store and hazardous products can be dropped off at the household hazardous waste drop-off site.