Fats, Oils, and Grease Awareness

At ECU, we all play a role in preventing sewer backups. To keep ECU’s sanitary sewer system working at its best, fats, oils and cooking greases should not be poured down the drain. Disposing of fats, oils, and cooking grease down the drains allows these materials to solidify and can lead to clogged pipes and backups. Overflowing sewers is a great health risk for the entire community and can be prevented through personal action.

ECU’s Facilities Services Department has taken a leading role in meeting state requirements by establishing an aggressive inspection, maintenance and repair program that meets, and in many cases exceeds the North Carolina standards.

Although the University has committed considerable resources to meet or exceed the regulatory requirements, the elimination of sanitary sewer backups and overflows relies heavily on ECU’s students, faculty, and staff to help prevent materials that damage or block the sanitary sewer system form entering the system. This can be accomplished by following these simple guidelines:

DO NOT:

• Pour grease, fats and oils from cooking down the drain
• Use toilets as wastebaskets
• Use sewers, toilets, or bathtubs as a means to dispose food scraps

DO:

• Collect cooking grease in a container and deposit it in trash cans
• Dispose of personal hygiene products in the trash cans provided
• Dispose of any food scraps in trash cans
• Scrape food and grease from plates into trash cans