Mayo school involved in Green Schools Water Ambassadors event

On Thursday last, November 7, 'Think Before You Flush', a campaign operated by Clean Coasts in partnership with Uisce Éireann, joined a number of Munster and Connacht based schools at the Savoy Hotel in Limerick to discuss the environmental issue of sewage-related litter. The students, hailing from Coláiste Chiraían (Limerick), Mungret Community College (Limerick) Cashel Community School (Tipperary) Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine (Kenmare) and Balla Secondary School (Mayo), are part of the Green Schools Water Ambassador programme and were asked to help spread the Think Before You Flush message throughout their school and community. The programme encourages students to undertake actions in their local area like litter picks, promoting re-usable items and recycling, assessing water quality, creating ponds and much more.
The Think Before You Flush campaign, operated by Clean Coasts in partnership with Uisce Éireann, emphasises the importance of appropriate flushing behaviour and disposal of items including wipes and other sanitary products in the bin, even if they are labelled as flushable. Only the 3 Ps, pee, poo and paper should be flushed down the toilet. When items such as wet wipes are flushed down the toilet, they can cause serious blockages in sewage systems, causing sewage overflows and ultimately polluting our coastal waters and beaches.
Ollie O’Flaherty from Clean Coasts spoke to the students about the importance of only flushing the 3 P’s down the toilet. He also discussed the 'Think Before You Pour' campaign that looks at the issue of pouring fats, oils, and greases (FOGs) from cooking down the kitchen sink. Instead of flowing freely, FOG’s cool and harden as they travel along the wastewater network. When FOGs combine with sewage related litter such as wipes, hair and dental floss fatbergs can form. Uisce Éireann clears thousands of blockages, including fatbergs, from the wastewater network every year. The Think Before Pour campaign urges everyone to avoid washing FOGs down the kitchen drain and, instead, dispose of them in the bin once cool.
Speaking about the evening Ollie said: “We were delighted to be involved with the Water Ambassador Training and we would like to thank Green Schools for inviting us to be part of this event. It was a great opportunity to engage with the students about the the Think Before You Flush and Think Before You Pour campaigns and the importance of making responsible decisions in the bathroom and kitchen.”
Uisce Éireann’s Head of Wastewater Operations, Nuala Woods, is thrilled that schools across Munster and Connacht are taking the initiative to promote and advocate for responsible waste management practices: “These workshops are crucially important to enhance awareness about the need to protect our precious environment. Many of these items discarded down the toilets of Ireland can end up in our streams, rivers, and on our beaches, creating a significant threat to wildlife as seabirds often ingest plastic and sewage related litter, mistaking it for food.
“We know from our research that attitudes and flushing behaviours are changing for the better, but there is still work to do. Almost a million people nationally are still using the toilet as a bin. We are asking people to always ‘Think Before You Flush’ and take a simple action such as putting a bin in the bathroom. Small changes in flushing habits will go a long way in protecting our precious environment.”

What can we do?
Join the campaign on social media @CleanCoasts and at www.cleancoasts.org. Learn more about the Think Before You Flush campaign at https://thinkbeforeyouflush.org/