“It can cause sewer blockages, wear and tear on our wastewater pumps when it gets too hard, and also causes issues with equipment once it gets through the plant, as well,” said Montgomery County Wastewater Western Regional Supervisor Greg Hassler.
Montgomery County’s Eastern and Western Wastewater Treatment Facilities process anything that goes down pipes in parts of Montgomery and Greene counties, working to treat water before it’s discharged back into the Little Miami watershed.
Hassler’s plant serves many people living in northern Montgomery County.
The impact of grease comes with a significant price tag. Grease-blocking agents added to water cost roughly $20,000, and the cost to clean out the sewer and tanks at a water treatment plant is typically $2,500 each time.
On top of that is the time and labor put into resolving maintenance issues at both plants and unclogging the public side of sewer lines, officials said.
When cooking grease is sent down pipes, it solidifies after it cools and clings to the top of a pipe’s interior. Some grease will also adhere to bits of sediment that travel through the water system, creating large grease clusters that stick to water treatment facility equipment in different stages of the treatment process.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
The county’s two plants treat roughly 35 million gallons of sewage every day. Wastewater workers maintain thousands of miles of sewer lines, which makes maintenance and removal of oils and grease more challenging.
But people should be aware of grease build-up year-round. Grease can take years to build up in pipes before you might see it become a problem, according to Montgomery County Environmental Services officials.
Cooking grease should not be poured down any drain. Rather, it should be poured into an aluminum can, solidified, and then thrown away in a regular trash can. Residents should never pour grease into a material that can melt with heat.
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