In the separation process at treatment plants, solid material (sludge) settles to the bottom while liquid material flows off to the river system, and the solids are further treated to produce biosolids cake, which is an earthy material good for use as fertilizer.

Flushable wipes do not break down in the sewer system or inside the treatment plant; instead, they catch on jagged surfaces, form into large blocks, and require manual removal by treatment plant staff.

The primary goal of Stickney Water Reclamation Plant and all wastewater treatment plants is to protect the water environment.

Over the course of a normal day at Stickney, enough railcars are filled with biosolids to contain 1,000 to 2,000 wet tons of product.

Because of its size, Stickney performs many treatment operations in-house, including an entire laboratory that does monitoring and research on biosolids applications.

Stickney operates a greenhouse where biosolids are mixed with soils in different proportions and tested on many different species to determine the optimum use for the biosolid product.

Toilets should not be used as trash cans; just because something can be flushed does not mean it should be, and people should concentrate on flushing only bodily waste and toilet paper.

Street drains should be kept clear because when rain falls, water sweeps everything in the street drain into the wastewater treatment system.

Stickney is considered the biggest or one of the biggest wastewater treatment plants in the world, treating 1,440 times the average daily volume of Illinois plants during high flow, compared to an average Illinois plant treating about 1 million gallons per day.

Working in a wastewater treatment plant involves exposure to unpleasant odors from raw sewage, sewer systems, and outhouses, and one should not expect sugarcoated conditions.

Joe Cummings advises people not to flush flushable wipes, recommending that only bodily waste and toilet paper should go down the toilet.

Ammonia is toxic to small fish and larger fish that live in waterways, and converting it to less toxic forms like nitrate and nitrite allows wildlife to tolerate the discharged water much better.

Biosolids produced from centrifuges are loaded onto railcars at Stickney to be transported, with roughly one railcar being filled with 70 wet tons of biosolids during one shift.