A "major hydraulic failure" at a sewage treatment plant in Halifax, Nova Scotia has caused authorities to remove four solid waste outflow filters "as they were backing up with what the mayor called 'floatables,'" a.k.a. flushed tampon applicators.
The tampon applicators are reportedly washing up on the shore, much to the chagrin of local residents. "I'm here twice a day with my dogs and you cannot walk two feet on the beach without seeing at least a dozen at your feet. And it's disgusting," says Cindy Schultz, who has set up a Facebook page to ask local women to stop flushing their applicators. Schultz has made it her mission to get tampon makers to create more environmentally friendly products, though she claims that certain companies have been less than receptive: "Tampax came back to me with a statement that was for us to read the instructions. Which I thought was really aggravating and got me even more riled up because to simply say, 'Read a nine-point instruction pamphlet' isn't enough. We're getting rid of plastic bags, why not get rid of the plastic tampon applicators as well?"
Tampon Applicators Flood Canadian Shores [UPI]
Wave Of Tampon Applicators Plagues Halifax Harbor [CBC]