Living drain-friendly 

Do you want to make sure that your waste does not harm the sea life? Do you want the nutrients in the sludge to be part of the eco-cycle?

-If you do, it's important to think about what goes down the drain.

Living drain-friendly is easy! Here are some tips:

1. FLUSH PROPERLY
- DON’T FLUSH ANYTHING DOWN THE DRAIN THAT DOES NOT BELONG THERE

Cotton wool, swabs, tampons, sanitary napkins, diapers, condoms, hair, snuff and other objects belong in the waste basket, not in the toilet.

Petrol, oil, medications and strong chemicals pollute the water and are some of the substances that cannot be removed in our wastewater treatment plants.

Pouring grease down the drain will clog the pipes.

The only thing that should be flushed down the toilet is body waste. And toilet paper, which degrades quickly. Anything else will cause problems, blockage and impairment of the wastewater treatment process.

2. GO EASY ON THE DETERGENTS
- SWEDEN IS A VERY CLEAN COUNTRY

When we scrub and clean we use loads of detergent, washing powder, shampoo, soap, car wash chemicals, floor cleaning products, degreasers and industrial detergents.

Unfortunately, the cleaner we get, the more the environment is polluted, because all these detergents contain substances that are harmful to the environment.

That's why we should always use as little detergent as possible when washing, doing the dishes or cleaning.

And remember to use only eco-labelled products. They contain only a minimum amount of substances harmful to the environment and are certified to be easily biodegradable.

3. NO SUBSTANCES HARMFUL TO THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE DRAIN OR REFUSE BIN

Never pour solvents, paint, medications or other chemicals down the drain. These substances cannot be treated in the wastewater treatment works. Instead they kill our bacteria that help to purify the wastewater.

The chemicals pass through the whole purification system and finally end up in the sea and other natural environments. 

Deposit your batteries in the special battery disposal bins or at an Environment Stations. Return leftover medications and old thermometers to a pharmacy, and other hazardous waste to an Environment Station.

4. THE RIGHT WAY TO WASH YOUR CAR – NEVER IN THE STREET

Car wash rinse water contains both harmful washing chemicals, pollutants like asphalt and oil residue, and several heavy metals. If you wash your car in the street, the rinse water runs down the storm drain and ends up in the water courses, unpurified.

The best thing to do is to take your car to a car wash or a do-it-yourself car wash. But first make sure that they have their own wastewater treatment facility which removes the pollutants and detergents before the water is let out into the public drainage system.