Today Year 6 completed our British Science Week investigation: Should we flush it away? In groups, we investigated which materials change and break down easily in water so that they can be safely flushed away by submerging different materials in water and shaking them for 30 seconds to simulate a toilet flushing. We found that tissue paper was the only material to break down into smaller pieces and begin to dissolve whilst wet wipes, cotton buds and kitchen roll did not. By watching TV news reports and reading newspaper reports, we learnt about the impact of flushing these materials on the environment. Items like wet wipes do not break down in water so when they are flushed down the toilet they mix with grease in the sewer and form massive solids called fatbergs. In groups, we made some recommendations to share with our friends and family to avoid negative impact on the environment, including on rivers and wildlife.
We also discussed how understanding how materials behave is very important in lots of scientific jobs. Environmental scientists, engineers, water quality technicians, water treatment operators and plumbers are all involved in making sure that we have clean water to drink and they help to keep our sewers working.
