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Pollution Prevention Week: Simple Ways We Can All Help

Pollution Prevention Week: Simple Ways We Can All Help
  • Jacob Herson

This week is National Pollution Prevention Week, a chance to highlight the work the Pollution Prevention team at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) does year-round, and point out some of the simple ways we can all help. Our goal is to keep pollutants out of San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean, protect public health and wildlife, and prevent damage to San Francisco's sewer system. Here are three main things we can all do to practice pollution prevention:

Put Cooking Oil in its Proper Place
Fats, oils, and grease don’t go down the drain. They can lead to blockages, cause sewer backups, and damage your sewer lateral, which connects your building to the sewer main. Maintaining the lateral is the property owner’s responsibility. Compost, reuse, or properly dispose of fats, oils, and grease by contacting Recology. Learn more about used cooking oil disposal here.

Only Flush the 3 Ps
Don’t flush anything except poop, pee, and toilet paper, also known as the 3 Ps. Putting anything else down the toilet can cause backups in your bathroom and damage the SFPUC's wastewater treatment system. Other items that are not the 3 Ps should be disposed of properly in compost, recycling, or landfill. Learn more about what not to flush here.

Only Rain Down the Drain
Don’t let anything except stormwater flow into a storm drain or catch basin. Most of the City’s drains (catch basins) flow to the SFPUC wastewater treatment plants. Some (storm drains) flow straight to the bay or ocean. Trash and leaves block drains, causing flooding. Cleaning products, paints, pharmaceuticals, car maintenance fluids, toxic gardening products, pet waste, and other garbage pollute receiving waters, harming people and wildlife. Collect and properly dispose of them instead. Check out the Adopt a Drain and Rain Guardians programs and see how you can get involved in your neighborhood.

2024 Pollution Prevention Calendar
The SFPUC's annual Pollution Prevention calendar will be available in December, featuring beautiful images of San Francisco's wild plants and animals, from the winners of this year's Photo Contest.