Frog, snake, soldier and cow – welcome to the secret world of Scotland's sewers

Published on Sunday 21 March 2010 21:56

A LIVE snake, a badger and a cow were among the bizarre things found in Scotland's sewer network in the last year, water chiefs have revealed.

Scottish Water workers were also surprised to find a platoon of toy soldiers, a frog and a goldfish clogging the pipes.

The company has to spend 6 million a year clearing blockages in the system and urged people to think carefully about what they flush away.

Many items also enter the system by falling into drains or manholes, which are found in fields as well as on roads.

Waste water general manager Rob Mustard said: "When sewers, pumping stations and sewage works get clogged they overflow and sewage escapes into rivers.

"This endangers public health, wildlife and the environment."

A worker at the Dunfermline waste water treatment works was stunned to notice a Mexican desert king snake curled beneath a metal grid boardwalk he was strolling along.

He dashed off to call the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, who collected the non-venomous constrictor snake and took it away.

A goldfish named Pooh, recovered in East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, and a frog found in a pump in Dornoch, Highlands, were none the worse for their time inside the sewer system.

A live badger found in a pumping station well at Drongan in Ayrshire also made a full recovery after it was rescued by the Scottish SPCA.

However, a sheep found in a manhole chamber and a cow recovered from a storm tank were not so lucky.

Many larger items enter the network after manhole covers are stolen and they fall in.

As well as animals, Scottish Water workers have recovered an eclectic collection of items, including a hardy Action Man still wearing his boots and a steam iron which still worked despite its time in the network.

Workers in Dumfries even found the credit card of one of their colleagues, which had been stolen from his wife's handbag on a night out in the pub.

The thief stole some money then flushed the contents of the bag down the toilet, and the credit card eventually reappeared at the sewage plant. It no longer worked.

False teeth and mobile phones are often found, as are rings and watches, which are handed to police.

Scottish Water dealt with more than 36,500 choked drains last year and urged the public to help reduce the amount by being more careful.

They estimate that 340 million items of sanitary waste are flushed each year and said that 55 per cent of all sewer blockages are caused by people disposing of cooking fat down their sink.

Mr Mustard said: "Scottish Water is playing its part to improve the quality of rivers, watercourses and beaches for communities across the country.

"Rivers, in particular, are the lifeblood of so much of our inland wildlife.

"However, we need local people to play their part and help us protect our natural environment."

Scottish Water has 50,139km (31,155 miles) of sewers and 1,837 wastewater treatment works, including septic tanks.

The company urged people not to put cooking fat down sinks or drains and to put items like sanitary towels and cotton buds in the bin.