Luggage causing a stink in Dingwall

A pink suitcase has been recovered from a Ross-shire drain.

Scottish Water staff were called out to a blocked sewer on May 16th.

The sewage response team had to return a day later with a "large tanker" and were shocked to find the luggage item stuck in the system.

Network Service Operator Cameron Maclennan said odd items choking the drains do pop up from time to time.

He said: "I’ve been working in the team for seven or eight years now and most chokes in this area are caused by wipes and fat but we do find the odd one caused by something more unusual going down the drain or toilet.

"I've been out to a few caused by toilet rim blocks which have been flushed down and recently I was called out to help with a choke caused by a plastic pink suitcase.

"That one was a bit of a surprise – I can only think someone must have lifted a manhole in their garden to get it down there."

"Wheelie bad idea"

Scottish Water posted an image of the pink suitcase earlier today, reminding the public what should be in the drains.

They said: "What a wheelie bad idea.

"Our sewage response team in the north got a bit of a shock when they were called out to clear a blocked drain and found a suitcase to be the culprit.

"Only pee, poo and toilet paper, please.

"Suitcases = nah."

Clearing drains cost £7m to clear

In 2020 there were around 36,000 blockages within Scotland’s waste water network which cost around £7 million to clear. Over 80% were due to the inappropriate disposal of items.

These can also cause issues at treatment works and overflows, blocking up screens and in some cases entering the treatment process or the environment.

Scottish Water have been sharing some of their finds as part of Plastic Free July, to encourage more people to make the link between the plastics they put down their drain and the impact that has on the sewer network and environment.

Cameron added: "I find that nine times out of 10 times blockages at people's houses are caused by something that has gone down their own drain.

"A blocked pipe can lead to toilets, sinks and drains backing up and, in some cases, sewage coming up into homes and gardens which can be very distressing for the people who live there.

"Some people deny putting the items we find down their drain, maybe out of embarrassment, but others genuinely don't realise that wipes and other items can cause blockages.

"If inappropriate items get into a main sewer then it can affect a lot of people – even a full scheme.

"We do get chokes from just toilet paper but if people stopped putting wipes, fats and other items down the drains there would be a lot less."

Tammy Jones, sewer response team leader for the Inverness area, said: "We find all sorts of other plastics too, from plastic bottles to kids' toys.

I think a lot of it is down to a lack of knowledge so anything we can do to help people make the link between items they may put down the toilet or drain and blocked pipes is a good thing.”

"Our team is there to respond to sewer blockages as they happen but if we didn’t have to attend at so many reactive chokes, we could look to do more proactive cleaning and maintenance of the network to improve service to our customers even further."