FWIW, according to my engineer sister who designs said facilities, and my father, who has served on the local 'sewer district' board for the past 35 years, paper towels in fact can and do cause problems for waste water treatment facilities, because they are not designed to disentegrate soon after wetting. (Flushed cigarette butts also cause problems, and end up floating in the river.)

This makes me wonder if the decrease in the 'quality' of tp over the last several decades is in part to accomodate increased waste water treatment. There are not nearly as many septic tanks in the USA as there were 40 years ago.

(Dad has been chairman of that board several times. During those periods, we can literally refer to him as a sh*thead:O)

Janie