Legislation aimed at disposable wipes could aid state's stressed sewers

In the old days, the only option in bathrooms was toilet paper. But with the advent of flushable wipes, people have gotten used to disposing many other types of material down the drain as well.

A little too comfortable, apparently.

Because they’re flushing all manner of wipes, according to city officials around the state who say the resulting clogged pipes are one of the top issues they face, from buying costly new equipment to chew through the wipes to sending workers out on Christmas Eve to unclog pipes.

Admittedly, it’s a dirty topic — and even more timely now with the COVID-19 pandemic leading to toilet paper hoarding by some people and shortages for others.

“I think this is the first committee hearing we’ve ever heard the word ‘icky’ and ‘guck,’” Rep. Laurie Halverson (DFL-Eagan) said during a Feb. 18 House Commerce Committee hearing, as city officials laid out the problem for lawmakers.

They support HF3181, sponsored by Rep. Anne Clafin (DFL-South St. Paul), that would ban nonwoven disposable products, including disposable wipes, from being labeled or advertised as flushable unless they meet certain requirements (i.e. they’re actually flushable).

Clafin said nonflushable wipes are clogging sewers statewide. She’s not trying to get rid of flushable wipes, but enact a labeling standard for the product.

Approved by the commerce and environment committees, the bill awaits action by the House Judiciary Finance and Civil Law Division. The companion, SF3139, is sponsored by Sen. Mark Koran (R-North Branch) and awaits action by the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Legacy Finance Committee.

Communities paying the price

Alexis Donath, legislative coordinator for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, said state officials have heard “over and over” from wastewater operators how costly the problem is — a cost that falls on taxpayers.

For example, workers have pulled out 700- to 800-pound clumps clogging wastewater systems and machinery.

“This is a very significant problem,” said Craig Johnson, intergovernmental relations representative for the League of Minnesota Cities. “Even very small community systems are seeing tremendous impacts. … Cities spend a tremendous amount of time and money responding to these.”

One week before Tim Gratke started his job as Hutchinson’s wastewater treatment supervisor, an 8-inch-wide pipe got clogged and was inoperable until the city constructed a $250,000 pipe project, he said. Last fall, a 10-inch-wide valve from the main lift station became clogged with wipes material and workers spent over 240 man-hours extracting more than 10 cubic yards of material.

Testifiers noted that Big Lake swapped out 14 conventional pumps for 14 vortex pumps at a cost of about $30,000 each and Minnetonka added grinder pump stations to five of 39 lift stations – at a cost of $20,000 to $30,000 per station – and $150,000 for special pumps. It is also looking to spend up to $1 million to do the rest. But fibers still got through.

Some cities have installed grinders that can shred matchbox cars or wood, but wipes can evade those, too, noted Frank Stuemke, pond optimization specialist with the Minnesota Rural Water Association. And if they do get shredded, they can “grab and grow” and tie themselves in huge knots or “blobs” that resemble Cousin Itt of the Addams Family, he said.

In addition to costing wastewater facilities hundreds of thousands annually in maintenance costs, unclogging efforts and claims due to sewage backups, he said pipes sometimes get clogged in private lines closer to homes and can flood basements with untreated sewage.

“I would rather live in a house with a ghost,” Gratke quipped.

In addition to the fiscal impact, there’s also a human impact. On Dec. 24, pumps were so clogged it short-circuited and burned out a panel in a lift station. Four staffers had to manually pump the lift station to prevent sewage from backing up in homes, said Mike Kuno, Minnetonka’s utility operations manager.

Labeling needs to change

City officials can try to educate the public not to flush the wrong kind of wipes, but acknowledge they won’t be successful if the products aren’t appropriately labeled.

Despite all our best efforts — including numerous stories in the local newspaper, mailed brochures, presentations and Facebook exhortations — people continue to flush the stuff, Gratke said.

He supports mandatory labeling products as clearly flushable or not, but also thinks there should be state and national awareness campaigns.

“In my opinion, it is only just that: A first step,” he said.

It’s not just flushable wipes that contribute to the problem. Flushing of everything from baby wipes to household cleaning wipes to feminine hygiene products has increased, he said.

Potential solutions

Tony Kwilas, director of environmental policy at the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, said Portland, Maine, was able to reduce baby wipe volumes by 40% with an award-winning campaign called “Save the Pipes, don’t flush the baby Wipes.”

Rep. Raymond Dehn (DFL-Mpls) said one option would be to outlaw certain wipes, while Rep. Tim Mahoney (DFL-St. Paul) suggested a more hands-on approach. He said CEOs of the companies should have to clean out such clogs, as he has. The last one took seven hours.

“I’d rather have property tax money spent fixing roads,” he said.

Industry opposition

In a letter to the House Commerce Committee, Allyson Azar, director of state government relations and public policy for The Household & Commercial Products Association, said without a national standard, the bill would create a labeling standard for Minnesota that doesn’t exist in other states, causing concern about interstate commerce and a patchwork of labeling requirements.

The Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry prefers lawmakers codify its guidelines to assess flushability and require prominent “do not flush” labels on non-flushable wipes. To pass the guidelines, wipes must only use tree-based fibers, not plastic, that begin to disintegrate upon flushing.

However, in its letter to the committee, acknowledgment was made that isn’t likely to stop people now in the habit of flushing all manner of things.