How to Stop a Fatberg

What are fatbergs and how do we stop them? Students will dive into the sewer (metaphorically!) as they design a solution to combat fatbergs in our sewers.  

In this activity students will  

• Learn about fatbergs, including what they are made of and how they form. 
• Find out why fatbergs are an issue for water companies. 
• Consider the consequences of what we wash down our drains and flush down our toilets. 
• Think more widely about the consequences of everyday decisions.

Suggested questions to engage students  

• How can we find out more about fatbergs? 
• Where are fatbergs a problem? 
• How can we combat fatbergs? 
• What does the occurrence of fatbergs say about us as a society? 
• What other day-to-day actions can you think of that might have flow on effects for others?  

Students will need 

• Coloured markers or pencils 
• A stack of sticky notes (post it notes) 
• 1 x sheet of butchers' paper  
• Resources to build models, e.g. sticky tape, glue, elastic bands, cardboard, corks, ice cream sticks, fabric, bottle lids, etc 

What to do  

Download the students worksheet, then begin by introducing the design process that will be used for this activity.

• How to stop a fatberg worksheet|  564.47 KB .pdf file

The stages are: Discover, Empathise, Ideate, Screen, Prototype, Share. 

Explain that you will be using this process to come up with a way to prevent fatbergs.  

Discover 

Prepare students for the topic of the challenge by viewing this video as a class:  

Empathise 

Shift into teams and set a timer for five minutes. Groups will draw on the what they have seen in the video to document their knowledge about fatbergs on sticky notes or post-its.    

Combine these post-it notes into a class map. Discuss and decide on your main themes. You will now have a visual map of the topic to explore and a shared language to build on.  Some inquiry questions that can be used to categorise the post-it notes into themes are: 

• What are fatbergs? 
• Where do fatbergs come from? 
• How are fatbergs formed? 
• What impact do fatbergs have on society? 
• What impact do fatbergs have on the environment? 

Ideate 

Return to the topic map and guide teams to define and narrow the topic into an achievable problem statement.  

The problem statement often defines the direction of the ideation stage. Some possible problem statements could be: 

• How can we educate people to stop fatbergs forming? 
• How can we design a physical device to catch and eliminate fatbergs? 
• How can we design a product that reduces the problems associated with wet wipes? 

Prompt teams to write their problem statement in the middle of a big sheet of paper.  Challenge students to brainstorm 50 ideas in 10 minutes. Ask them to record their ideas on sticky notes and paste them around their problem statement.  

Screen 

Students should analyse the outcomes of their brainstorm and pick their best idea. Some guiding questions that may be used to assess ideas are: 

• Is the idea specific to the problem statement? 
• Is the idea useful? 
• Is the idea achievable? 
• Is the idea innovative? 

Once selected, students should elaborate on their top idea using a drawing or a sketch. 

Ask students to plan a two-minute pitch to interested individuals or industry representatives. The pitch should include:  

• The problem statement they defined 
• Some ideas they considered 
• The solution they are promoting 
• Drawings to demonstrate their idea. 

Prototype 

Now students can incorporate feedback from their presentation to the class as they design articles, brochures, story books, prototypes or models. 

Students should identify gaps in their knowledge and research any information they may need to check the feasibility of their designs. This may take a few lessons. 

Share 

Once their designs are complete, ask students to present their completed designs to the class.  

You may like to conclude the challenge by sharing this short video from Melbourne Water about how we might prevent fatbergs from forming in the future!