The Environmental Protection Administration yesterday urged the public to dispose of tissue in trash cans rather than toilets to prevent pipe and tank clogging.
Based on a research report last week, the administration said flushing tissue could have an adverse impact not only on water quality, but also on energy production and carbon reduction.
The report said tissue paper is made with long fibers and often includes wet strength additives that help keep it from rupturing when wet, but which also make it harder to dissolve in water.
The report said tissue disposed of in trash cans is incinerated, which produces electricity, while tissue that has been flushed eventually becomes sediment in the sewage system.
Wang Yeuh-bin (王嶽斌), a senior technical specialist at the administration’s Department of Water Quality Protection, said tissue breaks down physically when flushed but does not dissolve completely, thus increasing the amount of sediment that settles at the bottom of septic tanks in the sewage disposal system.
However, “tissue does not clog septic tanks, not even the worst types of septic tanks in Taiwan,” Taiwan Toilet Association honorary president Wu Ming-hsiu (吳明修) said, adding that irreducible solids which gradually fill septic tanks just need to be removed on a regular basis.
Department of Water Quality Protection Deputy Director-General Andy Shen (沈一夫) said public restrooms should install trash cans and enforce more frequent clean ups to maintain a sanitary environment, adding that trash cans should have lids to reduce smells and unpleasant sights.
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