WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT

ABSTRACT
Nowadays many water resources are polluted by anthropogenic sources
including household and agricultural waste and industrial processes. Public
concern over the environmental impact of wastewater pollution has
increased. Several conventional wastewater treatment techniques, i.e.,
chemical coagulation, adsorption, activated sludge, have been applied to
remove the pollution, however there are still some limitations, especially
that of high operation costs. The use of aerobic waste water treatment as a
reductive medium is receiving increased interest due to its low operation
and maintenance costs. In addition, it is easy-to-obtained, with good
effectiveness and ability for degrading contaminants. This paper reviews the
use of waste water treatment technologies to remove contaminants from
wastewater such as halogenated hydrocarbon compounds, heavy metals,
dyes, pesticides, and herbicides, which represent the main pollutants in
wastewater.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
It is my proud privilege to release the feelings of my gratitude to several
persons who helped me directly or indirectly to conduct this summer
internship evaluation. I express my heart full indebtedness and owe a deep
sense of gratitude to my faculty members of my college for their sincere
guidance and inspiration in completing this seminar.
I would like to express my deepest thanks of gratitude to our department
H.O.D. sir and principal sir for giving me this opportunity to do this seminar
under the guidance of a great professor who helped me not only in
increasing my knowledge but also professionally for which I’m very grateful
to them.
Lastly, I would like to express my great appreciation to my parents and
friends for encouraging & supporting me to work hard and complete this
seminar report.
This seminar report would not have been completed without their enormous
help and worthy experience. Whenever I was in need, they were a helping
hand for me.
This study has indeed helped me to explore more knowledgeable avenues
related to my topic
i.e. “WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT”.
 PREFACE
I have made this report file on the topic “WASTE WATER
MANAGEMENT” have tried my best to elucidate all the relevant
detail to the topic to be included in the report. In beginning, I tried
to give a general view about this topic but ended up with a detailed
review.
My efforts have ended on a successful note. I express my sincere
gratitude to our sir who assisted me throughout the preparation of
this topic. I thank him for providing me the reinforcement,
confidence and most importantly the help for the topic whenever I
needed it.
 DECLARATION
I, the undersigned, solemnly declare that the seminar report on “WASTE
WATER MANAGEMENT” is based on my own work carried out during the
course of our study under the supervision of Our sir
I assert the statements made and conclusions drawn are an outcome of my
research work. I further certify that,
1. The work contained in the report is original and has been done by me
under the general supervision of my supervisor.
2. The work has not been submitted to any other Institution for any other
degree/ diploma/ certificate in this university or any other University of
India or abroad.
3. I have followed the guidelines provided by the university in writing the
report.
4. Whenever I have used materials (data, theoretical analysis, and text) from
other sources, I have given due credit to them in the text of the report and
giving their details in the references.
 PAGE
S.
TOPIC NAME NO. SIGN.
No

1 Introduction to Waste Water Management 1

2 Objectives of Waste Water Management 2

Types of Waste Water and Few

3 3-4
Terminologies

4 Process of Waste Water Treatment 5

5 6
Levels of Waste Water Treatment

6 Methods of Waste Water Treatment 7-19

Challenges faced
7 20

8 Conclusion 21

9 References 22
 INTRODUCTION
Wastewater are water whose physical, chemical or biological properties have been
changed as a result of the introduction of certain substances which render it unsafe for
some purposes such as drinking. The day-to-day activities of man is mainly water
dependent and therefore discharge ‘waste’ into water. Some of the substances include
body wastes (faeces and urine), hair shampoo, hair, food scraps, fat, laundry powder,
fabric conditioners, toilet paper, chemicals, detergent, household cleaners, dirt, micro-
organisms (germs) which can make people ill and damage the environment. It is known
that much of water supplied ends up as wastewater which makes its treatment very
important. Wastewater treatment is the process and technology that is used to remove
most of the contaminants that are found in wastewater to ensure a sound environment
and good public health. Wastewater Management therefore means handling
wastewater to protect the environment to ensure public health, economic, social and
political soundness (Metcalf and Eddy, 1991).
History of wastewater treatment
Wastewater treatment is a fairly new practice although drainage systems were built
long before the nineteenth century. Before this time, “night soil” was placed in buckets
along streets and workers emptied them into “honey wagon” tanks. This was sent to
rural areas to be disposed over agricultural lands. In the nineteenth century, flush
toilets led to an increase in the volume of waste for these agricultural lands. Due to this
transporting challenge, cities began to use drainage and storm sewers to convey
wastewater into waterbodies against the recommendation of Edwin Chadwick in 1842
that “rain to the river and sewage to the soil”. The discharge of waste into water courses
led to gross pollution and health problems for downstream users.
Today there have been great advances to make portable water from wastewater. In
recent times, regardless of the capacity of the receiving stream, a minimum treatment
level is required before discharge permits are granted (Peavy, Rowe and
Tchobanoglous, 1985). Also presently, the focus is shifting from centralized systems to
more sustainable decentralized wastewater treatment (DEWATS) especially for
developing countries like Ghana where wastewater infrastructure is poor and
conventional methods are difficult to manage (Adu-Ahyia and Anku, 2010).
 OBJECTIVES OF WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT
Wastewater treatment is very necessary for the above-mentioned reasons. It is more
vital for the:
1.Reduction of biodegradable organic substances in the
environment:
Organic substances such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, Sulphur in organic matter
needs to be broken down by oxidation into gases which is either released or remains in
solution.
2.Reduction of nutrient concentration in the environment:
Nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous from wastewater in the environment
enrich water bodies or render it eutrophic leading to the growth of algae and other
aquatic plants. These plants deplete oxygen in water bodies and this hampers aquatic
life.
3.Elimination of pathogens:
Organisms that cause disease in plants, animals and humans are called pathogens.
They are also known as micro-organisms because they are very small to be seen with
the naked eye. Examples of micro-organisms include bacteria (e.g., vibrio cholerae),
viruses (e.g., enterovirus, hepatitis A & E virus), fungi (e.g. candida albicans), protozoa
(e.g. entamoeba hystolitica, giardia lamblia) and Helminthes (e.g. Schistosoma
mansoni, ascaris lumbricoides). These micro-organisms are excreted in large quantities
in faeces of infected animals and humans (Awuah and Amankwaa-Kuffuor, 2002).
4.Recycling and Reuse of water:
Water is a scarce and finite resource which is often taken for granted. In the last half of
the 20th century, population has increased resulting in pressure on the already scarce
water resources. Urbanization has also changed the agrarian nature of many areas.
Population increase means more food has to be cultivated for the growing population
and agriculture as we know is by far the largest user of available water which means
that economic growth is placing new demands on available water supplies. The
temporal and spatial distribution of water is also a major challenge with groundwater
resources being overdrawn (National Academy, 2005). It is for these reasons that
recycling and reuse is crucial for sustainability.
 TYPES OF WASTE WATER
& FEW TERMINOLOGIES
1.Stormwater Runoff is water from streets, open yard etc after a rainfall
event which run through drains or sewers.
2.Industrial wastewater is liquid waste from industrial establishments
such as factories, production units etc.
3.Domestic wastewater also known as municipal wastewater is basically
wastewater from residences (homes), business buildings (e.g. hotels) and
institutions (e.g. university). It can be categorized into greywater and
blackwater.
4.Greywater also known as sullage is liquid waste from washrooms,
laundries, kitchens
which does not contain human or animal excreta.
5.Blackwater is wastewater generated in toilets. Blackwater may also
contain some flush water besides urine and faeces (excreta). Urine and
faeces together are sometimes referred to as night soil.
6.Sewage is the term used for blackwater if it ends up in a sewerage
system.
7.Septage is the term used for blackwater if it ends up in a septic tank.
8.Sewerage system is the arrangement of pipes laid for conveying
sewage.
9.Influent is wastewater which is yet to enter in a wastewater treatment
plant or liquid waste that is yet to undergo a unit process or operation.
10.Effluent is the liquid stream which is discharged from a wastewater
treatment plant or discharge from a unit process or operation.
11.Sludge is the semi-solid slurry from a wastewater treatment plant.
12.On-Site System: This is wastewater disposal method which takes place
at the point of waste production like within individual houses without
transportation. On- site methods include dry methods (pit latrines,
composting toilets), water saving methods (pour flush latrine and aqua privy
with soakage pits and methods with high water rise (flush toilet with septic
tanks and soakage pit, which are not emptied).
13.Off-Site System: in this system, wastewater is transported to a place
either than the point of production. Off- site methods are bucket latrines,
pour-flush toilets with vault and tanker removal and conventional sewerage
system.
14.Conventional sewerage systems can be combined sewers (where
wastewater is carried with storm water) or separated sewers.
15.Septic Tank is an on-site system designed to hold blackwater for
sufficiently long period to allow sedimentation. It is usually a water tight
single store tank.
16.Faecal sludge refers to all sludge collected and transported from on-
site sanitation systems by vacuum trucks for disposal or treatment.
17.Unit Operation: This involves removal of contaminants by physical
forces.
18.Unit Process: this involves biological and/or chemical removal of
contaminants.
19.Wastewater Treatment Plant is a plant with a series of designed unit
operations and processes that aims at reducing certain constituents of
wastewater to acceptable levels.
 PROCESS OF WASTE WATER TREATMENT
Due to the nature of contaminants in wastewater—physical, chemical and
biological, the unit operations and processes in wastewater treatment can
also be categorized as such. The units’ operations and processes in Waste-
water treatment are summarized as follows (Economic and Social
Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), 2003):
Physical unit operations
• Screening
• Comminution
• Flow equalization
• Sedimentation
• Flotation
• Granular-medium filtration
Chemical unit operations
• Chemical precipitation
• Adsorption
• Disinfection
• Dichlorination
• Other chemical applications
Biological unit operations
• Activated sludge process
• Aerated lagoon
• Trickling filters
• Rotating biological contactors
• Pond stabilization
• Anaerobic digestion
 LEVELS OF WASTE WATER TREATMENT
There are three broad levels of treatment: primary, secondary and tertiary.
Sometimes, preliminary treatment precedes primary treatment.
Preliminary treatment: It removes coarse suspended and grits. These
can be removed by screening, and grit chambers respectively. This enhances
the operation and maintenance of subsequent treatment units. Flow
measurement devices, often standing-wave flumes, are necessary at this
treatment stage.
Primary treatment removes settleable organic and inorganic solids by
sedimentation and floating materials (scum) by skimming. Up to 50% of
BOD5, 70% of suspended solids and 65% of grease and oil can be removed
at this stage. Some organic nitrogen, organic phosphorus, and heavy metals
are also removed. Colloidal and dissolved constituents are however not
removed at this stage. The effluent from primary sedimentation units is
referred to as primary effluent.
Secondary treatment is the further treatment of primary effluent to
remove residual organics and suspended solids. Also, biodegradable
dissolved and colloidal organic matter is removed using aerobic biological
treatment processes. The removal of organic matter is when nitrogen
compounds and phosphorus compounds and pathogenic microorganisms
are removed. The treatment can be done mechanically like in trickling
filters, activated sludge methods rotating biological contactors (RBC) or
non-mechanically like in anaerobic treatment, oxidation ditches,
stabilization ponds etc.
Tertiary treatment or advance treatment is employed when
specific wastewater constituents which cannot be removed by secondary
treatment must be removed. Advance treatment removes significant
amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, heavy metals, biodegradable organics,
bacteria and viruses. Two methods can be used effectively to filter secondary
effluent—traditional sand (or similar media) filter and the newer membrane
materials. Some filters have been improved, and both filters and membranes
also remove helminths. The latest method is disk filtration which utilizes
large disks of cloth media attached to rotating drums for filtration. At this
stage, disinfection by the injection of Chlorine, Ozone and Ultra Violet (UV)
irradiation can be done to make water meet current international standards
for agricultural and urban re-use.
METHODS OF WASTE WATER TREATMENT
There are conventional and non-conventional wastewater treatment
methods which have been proven and found to be efficient in the treatment
of wastewater. Conventional methods compared to non-conventional
wastewater treatment methods has a relatively high.

Fig. Typical Wastewater Treatment Plant level of automation.

Usually have pumping and power requirements. They require skilled labour
for operation and maintenance of the system
1. Conventional methods
Examples of conventional wastewater treatment methods include activated
sludge, trickling filter, rotating biological contactor methods. Trickling
filters and Rotating Biological Contactors are temperature sensitive, remove
less BOD, and trickling filters cost more to build than activated sludge
systems. Activated sludge systems are much more expensive to operate
because energy is needed to run pumps and blowers (National Programme
on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL), 2010).
These methods are discussed in detail in the subsequent sections.
1.1 Activated sludge
Activated sludge refers to biological treatment processes that use a
suspended growth of organisms to remove BOD and suspended solids. It is
based on the principle that intense wastewater aeration to forms flocs of
bacteria (activated sludge), which degrade organic matter and be separated
by sedimentation. The system consists of aeration and settling tanks with
other appurtenances such as return and waste pumps, mixers and blowers
for aeration and a flow measurement device. To maintain the concentration
of active bacteria in the tank, part of the activated sludge is recycled.

Primary effluent (or plant influent) is mixed with return activated sludge to form
mixed liquor which is aerated for a specified length of time. By aerating the system,
activated sludge organisms use the available organic matter as food, thereby, producing
stable solids and more organisms. The suspended solids produced by the process and
the additional organisms become part of the activated sludge. The solids are then
separated from the wastewater in the settling tank and are returned to the influent of
the aeration tank (return activated sludge). Periodically the excess solids and
organisms are removed from the system (waste activated sludge) to enhance the
performance of the system.
Factors such as temperature, return rates, amount of oxygen available, amount of
organic matter available, pH, waste rates, aeration time, and wastewater toxicity affect
the performance of an activated sludge treatment system. A balance therefore must be
maintained between the amount of food (organic matter), organisms (activated sludge)
and dissolved oxygen
Activated Sludge systems requires less space compared to trickling filter and has high
effluent quality. The disadvantage is that BOD is higher at one end of the tank than the
other the microorganisms will be physiologically more active at that end than the other
unless a complete mixing activated sludge system process is used.

Filter Floor

Underdrain

Fig. An activated Sludge System

1.2 Trickling filter:
It is a growth process in which microorganisms responsible for treatment are attached
to an inert packing material. It is made up of a round tank filled with a carrier material
(volcanic rock, gravel or synthetic material). Wastewater is supplied from above and
trickles through filter media allowing organic material in the wastewater to be
adsorbed by a population of microorganisms (aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative
bacteria; fungi; algae; and protozoa) attached to the medium as a biological film or
slime layer (approximately 0.1 to 0.2 mm thick).
Degradation of organic material by the aerobic microorganisms in the outer part of the
slime layer occurs. As the layer thickens through microbial growth, oxygen cannot
penetrate the medium face, and anaerobic organisms develop. The biological film
continues to grow to such a point that microorganisms near the surface cannot cling to
the medium, and a portion of the slime layer falls off the filter. This process is known as
sloughing. The sloughed solids are picked up by the underdrain system and transported
to a clarifier for removal from the wastewater
Trickling filters are efficient in that effluent quality in terms of BOD and suspended
solids removal is high. Its operational costs are relatively low due to low electricity
requirements. The process is simpler compared to activated sludge process or some
package treatment plants. Its operation and maintenance requirements are however
high due to the use of electrical power. Skilled labor is required to keep the trickling
filter running trouble-free: e.g., prevent clogging, ensure adequate flushing, control
filter flies. It is suitable for some relatively wealthy, densely populated areas which have
a sewerage system and centralized wastewater treatment; also suitable for greywater
treatment.
It also requires more space compared to some other technologies and has potential for
odor and filter flies.
Distribut or
Filter materi al

Filter Floor
Underdrain

Fig. Cross section of a trickling filter

1.3 Rotating biological contactors
Rotating biological contactors (RBCs) consist of vertically arranged, plastic
media on a horizontal, rotating shaft. The plastics range from 2 – 4 m in
diameter and up to 10 mm thick (Peavy, Rowe ad Tchobanoglous, 1985).
The biomass-coated media are alternately exposed to wastewater and
atmospheric oxygen as the shaft slowly rotates at 1–1.5 rpm (necessary to
provide hydraulic shear for sloughing and to maintain turbulence to keep
solid in suspension), with about 40% of the media submerged. High surface
area allows a large, stable biomass population to develop, with excess
growth continuously and automatically shed and removed in a downstream
clarifier. Thichness of biofilm may reach 2 – 4 mm depending on the
strength of wastewater and the rotational speed of the disk.
RBC systems are relatively new, though it appeared to be best suited to treat
municipal wastewater (Peavy, Rowe ad Tchobanoglous, 1985), they have
been installed in many petroleum facilities because of their ability to quickly
recover from upset conditions (Schultz, 2005). The RBC system is easily
expandable should the need arise, and RBCs are also very easy to enclose
should volatile organic content containment become necessary. RBCs have
relatively low power requirements and can even be powered by compressed
air which can also aerate the system. They follow simple operating
procedures and thus require a moderately skilled labour. RBCs are however
capital intensive to install and sensitive to temperature.

Influent
Effluent

Fig. Rotating Biological Contactors

1.4 Membrane bioreactors
This method performs more than just one treatment step. Membrane
bioreactor (MBR) systems are unique processes, which combine anoxic- and
aerobic-biological treatment with an integrated membrane system that can
be used with most suspended-growth, biological wastewater-treatment
systems.
 Fig. Membrane Bioreactor
Wastewater is screened before entering the biological treatment tank.
Aeration within the aerobic-reactor zone provides oxygen for biological
respiration and maintains solids in suspension. MBR relies on submerged
membranes to retain active biomass in the process. This allows the
biological process to operate at longer than normal sludge ages (typically
20100 days for a MBR) and to increase mixed-liquor, suspended-solids
(MLSS) concentrations (typically 8,000-15,000 mg/l) for more effective
removal of pollutants. High MLSS concentrations reduce biological-volume
requirements and the associated space needed to only 20–30% of
conventional biological processes.
MBRs cover a small land area as it eliminates the need for secondary
clarifiers, which equates to a huge savings in both footprint and concrete
costs. They can operate at higher biomass concentrations (MLSS) than
conventional treatment processes. Facility can be expanded by simply
adding more membranes to existing basins without expanding land cover.
For reuse quality, it does not require tertiary treatment, polymer addition,
or any further treatment processes to meet standards. This reduction in the
number of unit processes further improves system reliability and reduces
operation activities (TEC, 2010). The generally high effluent quality reduces
the burden on disinfection in the treatment process.
2. Non-conventional methods
These are low-cost, low-technology, less sophisticated in operation and
maintenance biological treatment systems for municipal wastewater.
Although these systems are land intensive by comparison with the
conventional high-rate biological processes, they are often more effective in
removing pathogens and do so reliably and continuously if system is
properly designed and not overloaded (FAO, 2006). Some of the non-
conventional methods include stabilization ponds, constructed wetlands,
oxidation ditch, soil aquifer treatment.
2.1 Waste stabilization ponds
Waste Stabilization Ponds are man-made, shallow basins which comprise of
a single series or several series of anaerobic, facultative or maturation
ponds. This is a low-technology treatment process with 4 or 5 ponds of
different depths with different biological activities. Treatment of the
wastewater occurs as constituents are removed by sedimentation or
transformed by biological and chemical processes (National Academy,
2005).The anaerobic ponds are mainly designed for the settling and removal
of suspended solids as well as the breakdown of some organic matter
(BOD5). In facultative ponds, organic matter is further broken down to
carbon dioxide, nitrogen and phosphorous by using oxygen produced by
algae in the pond. Maturation ponds usually remove nutrients and
pathogenic microorganisms, thus primary treatment occurs in anaerobic
ponds while secondary and tertiary treatment occurs in facultative and
maturation ponds respectively (Awuah, 2002).
Anaerobic ponds are usually between 2-5 m deep and receive high organic
loads equivalent to 100g BOD5 and m3/d leading to anaerobic conditions
throughout the pond (Mara et al., 1992). If properly designed, anaerobic
ponds can remove 60% of BOD5 at 200 C.
Facultative ponds are 1-2 m deep and usually receive the effluent from an
anaerobic pond. In some designs, they receive raw wastewater acting as
primary facultative pond. In facultative ponds organic loads are lower and
allows for algal growth which accounts for the dark green colour of
wastewater. Algae and aerobic bacteria generate oxygen which breaks down
BOD5. Good wind velocity generates mixing of wastewater in ponds thus
leading to uniform mixing of BOD5, oxygen, bacteria and algae which better
stabilizes waste.
Maturation ponds are usually shallow ponds of about 1.0-1.5 m deep
allowing aerobic conditions in for the treatment of facultative pond
effluents. Further reduction of organic matter, nutrients and pathogenic
microorganisms occurs here. Algal population in maturation ponds is more
diverse and removal of nitrogen and ammonia is more prominent.
Its disadvantages however include odour problems and it requires a large
area of land to function properly. arrangement of ponds is possible. The
figure below shows some possible combinations.
AN F M

F
M
AN

AN

F M

AN
AN—Anaerobic
F—F acultative
M—Maturation

Fig. Various Arrangement of Waste Stabilisation Ponds

2.2 Constructed wetlands
Constructed Wetlands (CW’s) are planned systems which are designed and
constructed to employ wetland vegetation to assist in treating wastewater in
a more controlled environment than occurs in natural wetlands (Kayombo
et al., 2000). They are an ecofriendly and a suitable alternative for
secondary and tertiary treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater.
They are suitable for the removal of organic materials, suspended solids,
nutrients, pathogens, heavy metals and toxic pollutants. They are not ideal
for the treatment of raw sewage, pre-treatment of industrial wastewater to
maintain the biological balance of the wetland ecosystem.
There are two types of CW’s namely Free Water Surface (FWS) and
Subsurface Flow (SSF) systems. As the name suggests, with FWS, water
flows above the ground and plants are rooted in the sediment layer below
the water column. With SSF, water flows through a porous media such as
gravels in which the plants are rooted. From a public health perspective, SSF
should be used in primary treatment of wastewater because there is no
direct contact of wastewater with atmosphere.

Fig. Free Water Surface System

The SSF is mostly anoxic or anaerobic as oxygen supplied by the roots of
plants is used up in biofilm growth and as such does not reach the water
column. The flow of water in SSF can be horizontal or vertical (Kayombo et
al., 2000). FWS are suitable for treating secondary and tertiary effluents and
also providing habitat due to aerobic conditions at and near the surface of
the water. Their condition at the bottom sediment is however anoxic.
Wetlands plants or macrophytes utilized in CW’s include Cattails (Typha
latifolia sp), Scirpus (Bulrus), Lemna (duckweed), Eichhornia crassipes
(water hyacinth), Pistia stratiotes (water lettuce) Hydro cotyle spp.
(pennywort), Phragmites (reed) have been known and used in constructed
wetlands.

Fig. Sub-surface flow system

CW’s are relatively cheaper to construct operate and easy to maintain. This
is an important decision variable for developing countries. In Egypt,
according to Hendy (2006), between 2000 and 2004, a 60-acre artificial
wetland constructed cost 25% the cost of conventional sewage treatment
plant.
They provide effective and reliable treatment of wastewater and are tolerant
to fluctuating hydrologic and contaminant loading rates. With the example
in Egypt, $9 million (US) was spent to treat an initial volume of 25,000
metric tons per day. After a year of use, it was determined that the wetland
was capable of treating 40,000 metric tons per day (Hendy, 2006). Also a
study conducted by Ratnapriya et al., (2009) revealed over 60% removal of
BOD5, COD, nitrogen among others.
CW’s also provide indirect benefits such as enjoying the scenic views of
green spaces, encouraging wildlife habitats and providing recreational and
educational centers. Again, in Egypt, the fishing industry is expanding since
the wastewater was no longer being discharged directly into the waterways,
the local fisheries improved. According to Hendy (2006), nitrates and heavy
metals were filtered out, leaving the fish healthier, larger and in abundant
quantity. This indirectly led to poverty reduction.
They however have some disadvantages such as land requirements, its
design and operation criteria is presently imprecise. CW’s are biologically
and hydrologically complex and its process dynamics are not completely
understood. Sometimes there are cost implications of gravels fills and site
grading during construction (Kayombo et al., 2000). It must be emphasized
that if properly designed, constructed wetlands should not breed pests and
mosquitoes.
2.3 Oxidation ditches
An oxidation ditch is a modified activated sludge biological treatment
process that utilizes hydraulic retention time of 24 - 48 hours, and a sludge
age of 12 - 20 days. to remove biodegradable organics. Oxidation ditches are
typically complete mix systems, but can be modified. Typical oxidation ditch
treatment systems consist of a single or multichannel configuration within a
ring, or oval. Preliminary treatment, such as bar screens and grit removal,
normally precedes the oxidation ditch. Primary settling prior to an oxidation
ditch is sometimes practiced and tertiary filters may be required after
clarification, depending on the effluent requirements. Disinfection is
required and reaeration may be necessary prior to final discharge.
Horizontally or vertically mounted aerators provide circulation, oxygen
transfer, and aeration in the ditch. Flow to the oxidation ditch is aerated and
mixed with return sludge from a secondary clarifier. The mixing process
entrains oxygen into the mixed liquor to foster microbial growth and the
motive velocity ensures contact of microorganisms with the influent.
Aeration increases dissolved oxygen concentration but decreases as biomass
takes up oxygen during mixing in the ditch. Solids also remain in suspension
during circulation.
They require more power than waste stabilization ponds less land, and are
easier to control than processes such as activated sludge process.
Oxidation Ditch Clarifiers
Influent Effluent

Rotor Effluent Wei r

Return Activated Sludge Waste Activated Sludge

Fig. Oxidation Ditch
 2.4 Upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB)
Upflow anaerobic sludge blanket is an anaerobic process using blanket of
bacteria (see Figure 11) to absorb polluting load. It is a form of anaerobic
digester which forms a blanket of granular sludge which suspends in the
tank. Wastewater flows upwards through the blanket and is processed
(degraded) by the anaerobic microorganisms. The upward flow combined
with the settling action of gravity suspends the blanket with the aid of
flocculants. Small sludge granules begin to form whose surface area is
covered in aggregations of bacteria. In the absence of any support matrix,
the flow conditions create a selective environment in which only those
microorganisms, capable of attaching to each other, survive and proliferate.
Gas/Solid Separator

Effluent

Sludge

Influent Sludge bed

Gas/Solid Separator

Fig. Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket

Eventually the aggregates form into dense compact biofilms referred to as
Effluent
granules. The UASB reactor works best when desirable micro-organisms are
retained as highly active and fast settling granules. In the UASB reactor,
when high solids retention time is met, separation of gas, sludge solids from
the liquid occurs. The special Gas-Solid-Liquid Separators in the reactor
Sludge
enable collection of biogases and recycle of anaerobic biomass. Biogas
contains
Influent 50-80% methane.
Sludge bed
UASB is suitable for the primary treatment of high-COD mainly soluble
industrial effluents. It can also be used for the treatment of wastewater
effluents of low and medium strength. It is suited to hot climates Low
energy requirement, less operation and maintenance, lower skill
requirement for operation, less sludge production, resource recovery
through biogas generation and stabilized waste as manure. UASBs however
have relatively poor effluent quality than processes such as activated sludge
process.
The technology however, needs constant monitoring to ensure that the
sludge blanket is maintained, and not washed out. The heat produced as a
by-product of electricity generation can be reused to heat the digestion
tanks.
2.5 Soil aquifer treatment
Soil matrix has quite a high capacity for treatment of normal domestic
sewage, as long as capacity is not exceeded. Partially-treated sewage effluent
is allowed to infiltrate in controlled conditions to the soil. The unsaturated
or "vadose" zone then acts as a natural filter and can remove essentially all
suspended solids, biodegradable materials, bacteria, viruses, and other
microorganisms. Significant reductions in nitrogen, phosphorus, and heavy
metals concentrations can also be achieved. After the sewage, treated in
passage through the vadose zone, has reached the groundwater it is usually
allowed to flow some distance through the aquifer for further purification
before it is collected through the aquifer.
Soil-aquifer treatment is a low-technology, advanced wastewater treatment
system. It also has an aesthetic advantage over conventionally treated
sewage since effluent from an SAT system is clear and odor-free and it is
viewed as groundwater either than effluent. Discharge effluent should travel
sufficient distance through the system and residence times should be long
enough, to produce effluent of desired quality.
3 Faecal sludge treatment and disposal
Sewage sludge contains organic and inorganic solids that were found in the
raw wastewater. Sludge from primary and secondary clarifier as well as from
secondary biological treatment need to be treated. The generated sludge is
usually in the form of a liquid or semisolid, containing 0.25 to 12 per cent
solids by weight, depending on the treatment operations and processes
used. Sludge is treated by means of a variety of processes that can be used in
various combinations. Thickening, conditioning, dewatering and drying are
primarily used to remove moisture from sludge, while digestion,
composting, incineration, wet-air oxidation and vertical tube reactors are
used to treat or stabilize the organic material in the sludge (ESCWA, 2003).
Thickening: Thickening is done to increase the solids content of sludge by
the reduction of the liquid content. An increase in solids content from 3 to
about 6%can decrease total sludge volume significantly by 50%. Sludge
thickening methods are usually physical in nature: they include gravity
settling, flotation, centrifugation and gravity belts.
Stabilization: Sludge stabilization is aimed at reducing the pathogen
content, eliminate offensive odours, and reduce or eliminate the potential
for putrefaction. Some methods used for sludge stabilization include lime
stabilization, heat treatment, anaerobic digestion, aerobic digestion and
composting.
5. Wastewater reuse in agriculture
Irrigation with wastewater is both disposal and utilization and indeed is an
effective form of wastewater disposal (as in slow-rate land treatment).
However, some degree of treatment must normally be provided to raw
municipal wastewater before it can be used for agricultural or landscape
irrigation or for aquaculture.
In many industrialized countries, primary treatment is the minimum level of
preapplication treatment required for wastewater irrigation. It may be
considered sufficient treatment if the wastewater is used to irrigate crops
that are not consumed by humans or to irrigate orchards, vineyards, and
some processed food crops.
Nutrients in municipal wastewater and treated effluents are a particular
advantage as supplemental fertilizers. Success in using treated wastewater
for crop production will largely depend on adopting appropriate strategies
aimed at optimizing crop yields and quality, maintaining soil productivity
and safeguarding the environment. Several alternatives are available and a
combination of these alternatives will offer an optimum solution for a given
set of conditions. The user should have prior information on effluent supply
and its quality. Wastewater effluent can be blended with conventional water
or solely used. Heavy metal concentrations in streams used for irrigation in
and around urban centers such as Accra and Kumasi have been sometimes
found to be beyond recommended levels for irrigation purposed and should
therefore may pose a health concern.
Countries must develop standards in congruence with the WHO guidelines
and enforce it.
 6. Industrial wastewater treatment
In general, the type of plant to be installed depends on the characteristics of
the wastewater produced from that industry. The basic principle according
to Kamala and Kanth Rao (1989) however is waste prevention by good
housekeeping practices that will ultimately result in volume reduction and
strength reduction. Industrial wastewater is treated the same way as
domestic or municipal sewage—preliminary, primary, secondary and
advanced treatment levels. Most of the treatment methods discussed is also
applicable. There could however be peculiarities with different industrial
depending on their major contaminant e.g., heavy metals, dye, etc.
Industrial wastewater in Ghana is generated from breweries, distilleries,
textile, chemical & pharmaceuticals and institutions and hotels which are
mainly situated in Accra and Tema. In the Western and middle belt of
Ghana, mining activities are predominant and the major polluter of our
rivers. EPA-Ghana grants permit to industries and requires industries to
install or build an in-house waste treatment plant. EPA-Ghana takes
samples quarterly from these industrial wastewater plants for testing in
their own laboratories for monitoring purposes. Most of those who have
permit have treatment plants though not all of them are functioning
properly.
 CHALLENGES OF WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT
Wastewater management though not technically difficult can sometimes be faced with
socio-economic challenges. A few of the challenges are discussed below.
1. Infrastructure
Most often than not, wastewater infrastructure is not the priority of most politicians
and therefore very little investment are made. It is however important to consider
wastewater infrastructure as equally important as water treatment plant because
almost all the water produced ends up as wastewater.
2. Pollution of water sources
Effects of wastewater effluent on receiving water quality is enormous, it changes the
aquatic environment thus interrupts with the aquatic ecosystem. The food we eat
contains carbonaceous matter, nutrients, trace elements and salts and are contained in
urine and faeces (black water).
Medications (drugs), chemicals and in recent times hormones (contraceptives) are also
discharged into the wastewater treatment plant. Discharge guidelines must be strictly
adhered to. This will ensure sustainability of water sources for posterity.
The precautionary and the polluter-pays principles which prevent or reduce pollution
to the wastewater have proven to be very efficient in the industrialized countries and
should be adapted in developing countries as well.
3. Choice of appropriate technology
Because the economy of most developing countries is donor driven, funds for
wastewater plants are mainly from donors. For this reason, they tend to propose the
technology which should be adopted. For this reason, when the beneficiaries, take over
the facility, its management of the operations and maintenance of parts become quite
challenging as the technical expertise, power requirements etc are not sustainable.
4. Sludge production
Treatment of wastewater results in the production of sewage sludge. There must be a
reliable disposal method. If it must be used in agriculture, then the risks involved must
be taken into consideration. Due to the presence of heavy metals in wastewater, it is
sometimes feared that agricultural use may lead to accumulation of heavy metals in
soils thereby contaminating of yields.
5. Reuse
Effluents which meet discharge standards could be used for agricultural purposes such
as aquaculture or for irrigation of farmlands. The challenge however is that if
wastewater treatment plants are not managed and continuously monitored to ensure
good effluent quality, reuse becomes risky.
 CONCLUSION
Wastewater is and will always be with us because we cannot survive without
water. When water supplied is used for the numerous human activities, it
becomes contaminated or its characteristics is changed and therefore
become wastewater. Wastewater can and must be treated to ensure a safe
environment and foster public health. There are conventional and non-
conventional methods of wastewater treatment and the choice of a
particular method should be based on factors such as characteristics of
wastewater whether it from a municipality or industry (chemical, textile,
pharmaceutical etc.), technical expertise for operation and maintenance,
cost implications, power requirements among others.
In most developing countries like Ghana, low-cost, low-technology methods
such as waste stabilization ponds have been successful whilst conventional
methods like trickling filters and activated sludge systems have broken
down. Effluent which meets set discharge standards can be appropriately
used for aquaculture and also irrigation. Though there are a few challenges
in waste water management, they can be surmounted if attention and the
necessary financial support is given to it.
 REFERENCES
1. Adu-Ahyiah, M. and Anku, R. E. “Small Scale Wastewater Treatment in
Ghana (a Scenerio)”
2. Retrieved, 03-10-2010:1-6
3. Awuah, E. and Amankwaa-Kuffuor, R., (2002) “Characterisation of
Wastewater, its sources and its Environmental Effects” I-Learning
Seminar on Urban Wastewater Management
4. Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (2003) “Waste-
Water Treatment Technologies: A General Review” United Nation
Publication
5. Food and Agricultural Organization (2006) Wastewater Treatment
6. http://www.fao.org/docrep/t0551e/t0551e06.htm#TopOfPage
7. Hendy, S. M. H. (2006) “Wastewater Management and Reuse in
Egypt” Regional Workshop on Health Aspects of Wastewater Reuse in
Agriculture Amman, Jordan 30 October –3 November 2006
8. National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (2010)
“Wastewater Treatment” Course Notes
9. Google Images