The NI Water education team will deliver their ‘Bag It & Bin It’ campaign to a number of secondary schools located near the Bog Meadows nature reserve, including St. Louise’s, St. Rose’s and St. Dominic’s.The campaign is designed to educate the pupils on the dangers of flushing inappropriate items down the toilet.
NI Water is asking the pupils to spread this message and keep the sewers in the area clean and blockage free.Our sewerage system is only designed to cope with human waste and small volumes of toilet roll.Other items such as cotton buds, nappies, tampons and baby wipes, which people flush down the toilet, do not break up and usually clump together to form a ball of rags.
Jane Jackson, Education Manager with NI Water explains: “Many people genuinely don’t realise the damage they are doing, not only to their own internal pipes, but also to the sewerage system they share with their neighbours.It is only when faced with blocked drains and out of sewer flooding that they realise those ‘harmless wipes’ are in fact creating chaos! NI Water is playing an active role in educating the public on the benefits of disposing waste in a bin, however we need the support of the public to make this message a reality.”
The Bog Meadows Wetland Restoration project was conceived following the flash floods in August 2008, which swamped the newly opened underpass and contaminated the local nature reserve.Thanks to funding from Biffaward and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency the three year project is now well underway.
Deborah McLaughlin, Bog Meadows Project Officer with the Ulster Wildlife Trust, said:
“The Ulster Wildlife Trust is delighted that NI Water is supporting the Bog Meadows Wetland Restoration project.The ‘Bag It & Bin It’ campaign will highlight the damage that out of sewer flooding causes to our natural environment and demonstrate that we must all take responsibility for our actions. The education programme is an integral part of the project, which will make a major contribution to efforts to reduce flooding risk, while improving public access and enjoyment.”
St. Louise’s College borders the local nature reserve and is also a partner on the Bog Meadows Wetland Restoration Project.Carmel McCartan, Principal at St. Louise’s stated:
"We, in St Louise's College, recognise the critical importance of promoting environmental awareness and the need for sustainable development in our young people.We are fortunate to be sited adjacent to the Bog Meadows Nature Reserve, which is a rich ecosystem that supports our curriculum in a variety of ways.I would like to express my deepest appreciation to the Ulster Wildlife Trust and Northern Ireland Water for working in partnership with us on this exciting, innovative project.”
To find out more about Bog Meadows Nature Reserve click here.
2 March 2010
