Everyone wants to see their city be successful, and it often takes everyone doing their part to achieve that goal.

In the case of making sure Holyoke’s wastewater treatment plant operates efficiently, it’s a question of not doing something that is the main issue.

Lennie Fisbeck, foreman of the city’s water department, said flushable wipes cause problems in wastewater systems like Holyoke’s as well as in the systems of larger cities.

“The products say they’re flushable, but they’re not biodegradable,” he said, adding that they are made to not crumble. “That is really our biggest problem.”

Fisbeck went on to say that toilet paper often dissolves before it reaches the lift station, but most of the plugs in town are often due to flushable wipes.

There is a wastewater screening basket at the lift station at the wastewater treatment plant on County Road 41 that’s meant to catch large items before they can plug the aerators in the ponds. Fisbeck said the basket needs to be cleaned at least once a week — sometimes twice — and there are often flushable wipes clogged in the basket.