Just like commuters fight traffic, Stafford County will fight grease.
Clogged water pipes have become a significant problem for the county’s plumbing infrastructure.
- The accumulation of fats, oils, and grease (FOGs) in the sewer systems has become a growing concern.
- In 2018, the County experienced 13 sanitary sewer overflows and 191 recorded sewer-main backups.
- An estimated 50% of these events have been attributed to FOG backups in the sewer systems.
The response and prevention of overflows and backups have not been cheap for the county.
- The costs of FOGs removal have been estimated to be $1.6 million
In January 2019, the county created a Pretreatment Coordinator position within the Department of Public Works.
- On November 12, the Utilities Commission was presented with a new program proposal to deal with FOGs, part of which is an ongoing social media campaign.
- #canyourgrease has been used to get the word out on platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.
- Over 38,000 informational flyers have been sent out to inform the public of the issue
In addition to manually cleaning out the pipes, other measures will be taken to inhibit and try to control their build-up.
- Chemical and bioremediation options are being considered to tackle the FOGs directly and to break them down inside the sewer systems.
- A major focus will be on commercial kitchens where the potential for FOGs going down the drain may be highest.
- Through annual inspections, the county want to insure best practices, training, and management of FOGs.
As part of their ongoing campaign, Stafford County has advertised on their Facebook page places for people to bring their collected grease during the holiday season.
The county recommends to store grease in a heat-proof container and leave it at one of two sites for disposal: The R-Board Regional Landfill at 489 Eskimo Hill Drive in Stafford County or the Belman Road Recycling Center, at 1200 Belman Road in Fredericksburg.
