How to dispose of cooking oil
With greasy waste oils and fats wreaking havoc down the drains, what is the correct way to dispose of cooking oil? Resource explores.
Whilst the sink may seem like a quick and easy route for the disposal of used cooking oils, pouring greasy liquids down the plughole wreaks havoc on drains, causing serious blockages as the oil solidifies.
Down in the sewers, the greasy substances can combine with other products that shouldn’t have been flushed – like wet wipes and other plastic items – to form congealed clumps of fatty waste, known as ‘fatbergs’. Clogging up the pipes, fatbergs cause damage to not only drains but the whole local sewage system.
In September 2017, a colossal 250-metre lump of congealed fat and rubbish nicknamed ‘Fatty McFatberg’ was found blocking the sewers in Whitechapel, London, taking nine weeks to remove. It measured twice the length of the Wembley Stadium football pitch and is thought to be the largest fatberg found in the UK.
According to trade body Water UK, water companies spend around £100 million each year to clear sewage blockages – money that, just like cooking oil, is going straight down the drain.
A spokesperson for water company Wessex Water commented: “We clear around 13,000 sewer blockages every year, costing £5 million. Beyond the financial cost, blockages can cause huge distress and disruption to customers – with sewage even ending up in people’s homes as a result.”
Resource explores what residents, businesses and the industry alike can do to avoid these greasy masses clogging drainage systems and costing millions.
Cooking oil in the home
Recycle Now, which is managed by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), advises that small amounts of cooking oils and fatty foods can be placed in the food waste bin in residential properties, for collection by local food waste recycling services.
If the local council doesn’t provide food waste collection, then residents should dispose of small quantities of oil in residual waste bins by soaking it up with a paper towel and making sure that it’s cooled down first.
Larger volumes of cooled cooking oil should be placed in a sealed container, such as a leftover plastic pot or tub, before being thrown away with general residual waste or recycled at many Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs). Residents can check with their local recycling centre for more information on collection policies.
Of course, oil that is relatively clean can simply be reused.
According to Wessex Water, It is estimated that around half a million tonnes of fats, oils and greases – known collectively as FOGs – end up in the UK sewer network each year, so it’s vital that we collectively learn to deal with this waste properly.
What should businesses do with cooking oil?
Businesses are legally required to dispose of used cooking oil appropriately, and can face significant fines for not complying with disposal regulations.
Cooking oil collection services, such as Olleco, help businesses to recycle waste cooking oil to produce biofuels, which can be used to replace fossil fuels used for transport.
Olleco has a national network of depots and processing facilities, allowing businesses all over the country to recycle their oil. Once the cooking oil has been collected, it is then processed at one of Olleco’s three biorefinery sites, before being sent to the company’s biodiesel plant in Liverpool.
The Renewable Energy Association (REA) has highlighted the benefits of using cooking oils to produce biodiesel, highlighting the carbon saving of around 88 per cent compared to fossil fuel diesel. Fuels made from cooking oils are also favourable to crop-based biofuels, which offer lower carbon savings of around 50 to 60 per cent. The remains of the Whitechapel ‘Fatty McFatberg’ fatberg were even turned into biofuel.
Paul Thompson, Head of Renewable Transport Fuels at the REA, said: “We’re keen to explain just why this fuel is one of the best environmental solutions we have at the moment, with among the highest levels of greenhouse gas savings seen in road transport.
“Furthermore, the industry is proposing even more rigour and transparency in auditing procedures.”
So, as demand for cooking oil-based biofuels increases, it appears that more and more of the cars, buses and lorries on our roads could be powered by leftover frying oil from the chippy – a win-win situation, both for our drains and the environment.
