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Research Objective:
Find out why people flush wipes over using a reuseable sustainable alternative?

Participants: Selection Process
The participants we ask could be vunerable, as we are involving all those markets that would use Wet-Wipes. So we want to treat them all with care.
In terms of safeguarding etc, I don't feel as if any safeguarding procedures need to be in order, unless we identify a market of flushing wet wipes to be those who are of the younger demographic.

Method
Action Plan- Dates
Name of Sponsor
GreenPeace/Glastonbury
Are there any Health and Safety Concerns?
Is there any environmental impact?
The issues poses a massive environmental impact as it causes fat-bergs, and costs millions to clear up.

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Issue: Flushing Wet Wipes
Specific Behaviour to Change: Stop people flushing wet wipes
Where is the behaviour happening: All over the UK in toilets, drains, water streams
When is this behaviour happening: Everyday
Who is doing this: Everyone (cleaning, make-up, babies etc)
Why: Convineant, no mess, unknowing that they are not flushable, don't want to carry dirty wipes.

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It is estimated that the cost of unblocking the system in the UK is around £88 million a year (Nelms et al. 2017), and more than 50% of obstructions are caused by wipes and hygiene products

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"The Great British Beach Clean 2017 (MCS 2017) concluded that the number of wet wipes found in the UK coastline has increased by 94% in 2017 and a total 400% increment during the last decade (27.5 pieces of wet wipes for every 100 m of beach cleaned)."

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Yum yum a wet wipe in my tum

Sewage suppers - dinner straight from your toilet

"Microplastics can form as the result of degradation or mechan- ical breakdown of larger plastic items, but they are also manufactured for use in some items such as cosmetics, hy- giene products and synthetic fabrics. These are then discharged and transported into sewer systems and eventually enter the aquatic environment via wastewater outflows"

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PANTOJA MUNOZ, Leonardo, Alejandra GONZALEZ BAEZ, Deena MCKINNEY and Hemda GARELICK. 2018. ‘Characterisation of “flushable” and “non-Flushable” Commercial Wet Wipes Using microRaman, FTIR Spectroscopy and Fluorescence Microscopy: To Flush or Not to Flush’. Environmental science and pollution research international 25(20), 20268–79.

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https://metro.co.uk/2019/06/26/can-you-take-wet-wipes-and-make-up-wipes-to-glastonbury-or-are-they-banned-10073902/

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The first of the Glastonbury Festival crowds have already arrived at Worthy Farm, and with them comes their supplies for the long weekend ahead.
Even though the headline acts don't start performing until Friday, a deluge of festival-goers have already set up camp for Glastonbury - aka one of the most looked-forward-to events in a music fan's calendar.

Preparation is key with a festival of this scale, especially when many people arriving today will no doubt be staying right the way through until Sunday.

While wet wipes have a reputation for being a festival essential, to help you get passably clean in a pinch, are you allowed to take them with you to Glastonbury?

Can you take wet wipes and make-up wipes to Glastonbury?

While wet wipes are not on list of items that are prohibited at Glastonbury Festival, the festival organisers have asked that anyone attending 'please avoid' using disposable wipes.

As the Glastonbury website puts it: 'Wipes - even biodegradable wipes, which quickly breakdown into micro-plastics - are problematic environmental pollutants.

'Plant fibre-based biodegradable wipes release greenhouse gases when they decompose, so we would like people to really try to use alternatives. A washcloth and a bar of soap works wonders!'

In addition to the old faithful washcloth and soap option, there are also plenty of environmentally friendly, reusable and washable makeup remover pads out there which could easily be used to clean your body too.

The prohibited items that you cannot take with you to Glastonbury are:

Sound systems or drums.

Generators.

Portable laser equipment or pens.

Sky lanterns or kites, unauthorised fireworks, or wax flares.

Nitrous oxide (laughing gas), which is a contraband good under the Psychoactive Substances Act of 2016.

Animals (except registered guide dogs).

Got a showbiz story?

MORE : America's Got Talent dancer hits golden buzzer for himself and Simon Cowell's reaction is priceless

MORE : What time do the Glastonbury gates open?

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Can you take wet wipes to Glastonbury or are they banned?

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The first of the Glastonbury Festival crowds have already arrived at Worthy Farm, and with them comes their supplies for the long weekend ahead. Even though the headline acts don't start performing until Friday, a deluge of festival-goers have already set up camp for Glastonbury - aka one of the most looked-forward-to events in a music fan's calendar.

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Tunnel Of Truth!

Can you fish your way through this sewer pipe through all the fat bergs and unsightly groups of mysterious substances???

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No ‘flushable’ wet wipes tested so far pass water industry tests

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They say wet wipes don’t break down and so cause sewage blockages which cost millions to put right.

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/02/wet-wipes-forming-islands-across-uk-after-being-flushed

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Wet wipes which contain plastic are forming "islands" across the UK after being flushed, with rivers changing shape after the products pile up on their banks, MPs have heard as legislation aiming to ban their sale had its first reading in the House of Commons.

Labour MP Fleur Anderson's plastics (wet wipes) bill would prohibit the manufacture and sale of wet wipes containing plastic if it was to pass through parliament and receive royal assent.

However, as a private member's bill it is unlikely to become law without government support, although Downing Street has signalled it is committed to ending "the throwaway culture".

During the first reading, MPs were told the UK needs to ban wet wipes which contain plastic because the scale of the problem caused by flushing them "is so big, so damaging and increasing so fast".

They also heard that marine animals are dying, while Britons might be eating a "credit card's worth of plastic" due to microplastic shards from the discarded hygiene products.

"As a mother of four children I have used a lot of wet wipes and I completely understand the pressures that parents are under and how useful wet wipes are," Anderson said.

"I know that parents also want to do the right thing for the environment."

But she added that 90% of the 11bn wet wipes used in the UK each year contain some form of plastic which, when broken down, turn into microplastics which can be ingested by wildlife and enter the food chain and water supply.

She added that the problem was growing, with the Great British Beach Clean reportedly seeing an increase from 1.7 wet wipes per average 100m of beach to 18 wet wipes between 2005 and 2020.

Anderson told the Commons: "When these plastics enter our local marine environment and water systems in such large volumes the damage is absolutely devastating. Globally, 100 million animals die each year from plastic waste alone."

She also cited data from the World Wildlife Fund, which suggested people eat about five grams of plastic a week, which she described as "literally eating a credit card's worth of plastic every week", claiming wet wipes were a "huge cause of this".

The MP told of a recent visit to the Thames where huge piles of wet wipes on the riverbanks had changed how it flowed, and even described seeing a "wet wipe island" in the river.

Brands such as Holland & Barrett and the Body Shop had already committed to selling only plastic-free wipes, which are usually made with bamboo or other plant fibres, Anderson said.

She said a "greater scale of production" of plastic-free wipes could be encouraged by the ban, making the alternative cheaper.

"We need legislation because the scale of the problem is so big, so damaging and increasing so fast," said Anderson.

The bill will be considered again on Friday 19 November.

A No 10 spokesperson said the 25-year environment plan sets out "a commitment to eliminate avoidable plastic waste".

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Wet wipes 'forming islands' across UK after being flushed

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Wet wipes which contain plastic are forming "islands" across the UK after being flushed, with rivers changing shape after the products pile up on their banks, MPs have heard as legislation aiming to ban their sale had its first reading in the House of Commons.

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"they clog together in ‘fatbergs’ that cost the UK £100m each year to clear up"

https://www.citytosea.org.uk/campaign/unflushables/flushable-wet-wipes/

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The problem with wet wipes

Most people think wet wipes are safe to flush down the loo. You may have read the packaging and believed the sneaky manufacturer's claim that they're flushable. Don't be fooled - they're not! They're mainly made of plastic, so they don't break down like loo paper.

Research carried out on behalf of water companies showed that most wipes failed to break down in conditions simulating the UK's drainage system. Instead, they clog together in 'fatbergs' that cost the UK £100m each year to clear up . That's just gross on so many levels.

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'Flushable' Wet Wipes - City to Sea - Don't beleive the wipe

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The problem with wet wipes Most people think wet wipes are safe to flush down the loo. You may have read the packaging and believed the sneaky manufacturer's claim that they're flushable. Don't be fooled - they're not! They're mainly made of plastic, so they don't break down like loo paper.

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Anonymous surveys
Focus groups
Interviews

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Drop slide for fishing awareness at Glasto 

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Drop slide for fishing awareness at Glasto 

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https://media.greenpeace.org/archive/The-Drop-Slide-on-the-Trawler-in-the-Greenpeace-Field-at-Glastonbury-27MZIFJ6SR5HL.html

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Greenpeace - The Drop Slide on the Trawler in the Greenpeace Field at Glastonbury

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The Drop Slide on the Trawler in the Greenpeace Field at Glastonbury - GP0STP8LF The trawler with slide in the Greenpeace field at Glastonbury. Greenpeace has created a trawler for festival goers to climb up, drink and dance in as well as hear the voices of sustainable fishermen whose businesses ar…

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Water Company
Your House Pipes

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Made of no biodegradable matter and oils/fats that are poured away

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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-54735988

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"Our brilliant engineers were able to clear the huge blockage before it caused serious problems, but we're urging everyone to be especially careful what they flush down their toilets," he added.

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Belgravia fatberg: 'Disgusting' mass cleared from sewer

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"Our brilliant engineers were able to clear the huge blockage before it caused serious problems, but we're urging everyone to be especially careful what they flush down their toilets," he added.

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£18Mil spent each year clearing blockages!

Wet Wipes cause 93% of the blockages in the Sewers

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/19/workers-clear-huge-disgusting-fatberg-from-london-sewer

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Members of the public have been urged to be careful what they flush after a "huge, disgusting" fatberg the weight of a small bungalow was cleared from an east London sewer.

Thames Water engineers and MTS Cleansing Services spent two weeks using high-powered water jets and hand tools to chip away at and eventually remove the rock-like heap, which was said to have smelled like composting festival toilets and rotten meat, from a conduit in Canary Wharf.

A worker tackles the blockage. Photograph: Thames Water/PA

The fatberg had got stuck under Yabsley Street, clogging long sections of the sewer, and could have spilled sewage into people's homes if it had grown any further, engineers said.

Fatbergs are formed when oil, grease and fat poured down drains combine with non-biodegradable items such as wet wipes, nappies and cotton buds.

The head of waste networks at Thames Water, Matt Rimmer, described the fatberg as "huge and disgusting", and said that it had taken "a great deal of brute force" to clear the blockage.

"We'd ask everyone to help fight the fatberg by only flushing the 3Ps - pee, poo and paper - as well as disposing of fat and oils in the bin, not the sink," he said.

Chris Henderson of MTS Cleansing Services said teams had worked tirelessly and achieved great results in difficult conditions.

It is the latest in a series of fatbergs to have been removed in recent years. One the size of an African elephant was broken up in October 2020. Thames Water removed 140 tonnes of fatbergs from the drains of Greenwich, Pall Mall and the Shard in 2019.

Thames Water said it spent £18m a year clearing 75,000 blockages from sewers in London and the Thames Valley. Its "bin it, don't block it" campaign urges customers to consider what can and cannot be flushed down their toilets.

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Workers clear 'huge, disgusting' fatberg from London sewer

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Members of the public have been urged to be careful what they flush after a "huge, disgusting" fatberg the weight of a small bungalow was cleared from an east London sewer.

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https://www.water.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Fine-to-flush-WIS-4-02-06-January-2019.pdf

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https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2019/august/why-you-should-never-flush-wet-wipes-down-the-toilet.html

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Why you should never flush wet wipes down the toilet

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Behaviour is an action or an interaction 

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Behaviour is an action or an interaction 

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What has been done to change this behaviour? 

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What has been done to change this behaviour? 

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- People are already using their washing machines so what is to stop people using them to wash reusable products.

-  UK Water industry “Fine to Flush” specification

-  Clean ups

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What is causing/influencing the behaviour?

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What is causing/influencing the behaviour?

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-   People flushing because it’s convenient/no mess and less icky

-   Reusable wipes take longer to clean

-   People are embarrassed to carry dirty wipes

-   People are encouraged to use wet wipes (more sanitary)

-   People just don’t know

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-  People aren’t thinking of wet wipes as plastic

-  Parents not using reusable products

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-    Anyone flushing

-     Kingston upon Thames was the worst area in London

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-  In July 2019 alone, 23,000 wet wipes were found on the shore of the River Thames in Barnes, southwest London. This was within two hours of a volunteer clean-up organised by Thames21. (Natural History Museum)

-  90% of sewage blocks are caused by wet wipes in the UK. (Natural History Museum)

-  Wet wipes are currently one of the biggest contributors to river pollution (Natural History Museum)

-  Destroying habitats for the Asian Clams as the wipes prevents oxygen leaving the sediment and so smothering the clams.