SAN ANTONIO – A nasty problem is clogging the sewer system and costing taxpayers money. Often without knowing it, the taxpayers are actually the ones causing the problem.
When people put things that don't belong in their sinks or toilets, they don't see the outcome.
For SAWS crews, grease is the biggest enemy.
"If you put grease into the sewer system it eventually becomes a solid again and that means it is going to clog up the system," said SAWS representative Lilliana Gonzalez.
It gets worse when other things bind to it, like flushable wipes that many people have started using. The problem is, water systems like SAWS have come to realize, those wipes are not flushable at all.
"Unfortunately it doesn't disintegrate," Gonzalez said.
It's a problem nationwide, and Gonzalez said there are even lawsuits aimed at the companies labeling the wipes as flushable.
"It is a constant problem. So much so that we have a decree that's asking us to replace our sewer infrastructure but also educate the public about it," Gonzales said.
She is pleading with the public not to flush those wipes, and also to scoop or wipe grease out of pans and then throw it in the trash, instead of washing it down the sink. If not, it all ends up inside the city pipes, and a crew has to be empty it all.
To fix and avoid problems SAWS line-cleaning crews clear out drains across the city 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
"Everything gets clogged up together and it turns into a big concrete mass," said line cleaning manager Juan Ramirez.
They pull out giant solid balls of grease, and massive clumps of “flushable” wipes, sometimes the size of cars.
Inside a lab, the water contaminated with grease or fat is then tested just like any other water in the system.
The SAWS testing lab has stacks of jars filled with yellow junk floating in them. That junk comes from homes, restaurants, and stores all across the city.
Lab tech Patricia Gonzalez uses a giant grease machine to filter the grease and fat out, and then she weighs it all.
SAWS disposes of about 45 tons of non-soluble waste every single month. It all ends up in the landfill.
As Gonzalez explained, SAWS is already replacing piping across the city because of this constant buildup.
The more it has to replace, the more money it costs taxpayers.