Lady Caca, Brush-sta Rhymes and Shania Drain are just a few of the names given to hedgehog devices currently deployed in a targeted section of Anglian Water’s sewer network to raise awareness about the detrimental impact of unflushables, particularly wet wipes. 

The water company is trialling the use of these spiky, metal, hedgehog-shaped devices in a bid to compel customers to stop flushing anything other than pee, poo and toilet paper and prevent avoidable blockages that pose risks to homes, businesses and the environment. 

The evidence gathered by the hedgehog devices is then used to initiate a series of communications, including door knocking and letter drops, targeted at the households in the local area responsible for flushing the wrong items, with information to help them understand the impact of their actions and enforce the right behaviours. 

In the first area to be tested as part of the pilot scheme – a small region of Northamptonshire with 10,000 households – the hedgehog devices captured over 5,000 wipes in just the first two weeks. 

In total, more than 10,000 wipes – along with some more unusual items including socks, cables and dog poo bags – have now been captured, counted and properly disposed of since the trial began in December.  

The early results of the pilot scheme are promising, indicating a reduction in the number of wipes being flushed in the area compared to the period before communications with local customers started. 

Lorenzo Pompa, Water Recycling Network Support Manager at Anglian Water said: “Wet wipes are not designed to be flushed. They combine with fats, oils and greases – that also don’t belong in our sewers – and create fatbergs that block the pipes and cause up to 80% of the sewer flooding issues we see in our region.  

“This is a game changing moment for us as it's an opportunity to work with our customers directly to find out what’s going into our sewers and really highlight the issue, and how we all need to do our bit to help prevent blockages in the first place.” 

Anglian Water’s engineers clear thousands of avoidable blockages from the region’s pipes costing the company, on average, a whopping £19 million a year – money that adds to customer bills and could be avoided.  

Last year, the water company filtered out 2,800 tonnes – equivalent to the weight of 28 blue whales – of unflushable items across its Water Recycling Centres (WRCs) that had been wrongly disposed of down the toilet.  

Lorenzo added: “Ultimately, unflushables are reducing the capacity of our sewers due to blockages and putting homes and the environment at unnecessary risk.  

“We urge everyone to help us keep our sewers clear and ‘Just Bin It’. All wipes block pipes; nothing should go down the toilet other than the 3 Ps: pee, poo and (toilet) paper.”