Environmental Issues In Wastewater Treatment

Wastewater is a general term used to represent the water with poor quality containing lots of contaminants. Wastewater can cause serious environmental and health problems to human beings when discharged into the nearby water bodies. It is an important measure to lessen the pollutant and other contaminants present in wastewater. The first step in wastewater treatment method is primary treatment which removes the solids, oil and grease present in it. The second step which is the secondary treatment or biological treatment exploits microorganisms to eliminate the chemicals present in wastewater. The final step, tertiary treatment eliminates the microbes from wastewater before discharging into the river (Rawat et al., 2010). Wastewater, a liquid

A momentous part of this waste will end up as wastewater. The quantity and quality of can be determined by several factors affecting it. Not all humans or industries produce the same amount of waste. Behaviour, lifestyle and standard of living of the inhabitants plus the technical and juridical framework by which people are surrounded influenced the amount and type of waste produced in households. In households and industry most of the wastes end up as solid and liquid waste thereby having significant possibilities for changing the amounts and composition of the two waste streams generated (Henze & Comeau, 2008). Significantly, wastewater composition was affected by the design of the sewer system. Separate sewer systems are used in most developing countries. In these the storm water is transported in trenches, canals or pipes. In combined sewer systems, different types of wastewater are mixed (Table 2) in to which old urban areas might have. In addition, it is a part (small or big) of the total wastewater that is discharged to local water bodies, often without any treatment (Henze & Comeau, 2008).

Table 2. Wastewater

Organisms Different types of organisms living in wastewater are important contributors to water treatment. Certain carbon-based (organic) pollutants in wastewater are broken down by a variety of bacteria, protozoa, and worms. These organisms consume the pollutants converting it into water, carbon dioxide or new cell growth. Numerous bacteria and other microorganisms in wastewater carry out most of the treatment. Most wastewater treatment systems are designed to rely in large part on biological processes.

2. Pathogens Present in wastewater were diseases caused by viruses, parasites, and bacteria called pathogens that can be found anywhere in the community. These pathogens often originate from people and animals that are infected with or are carriers of a disease.

3. Organic Matter Organic materials were found everywhere in the environment. These contain the carbon-based chemicals which are the building blocks of most living things. Organic materials entering in human wastes, paper products, detergents, cosmetics, foods, and from agricultural, commercial, and industrial sources in wastewater originate from plants, animals, or synthetic organic compounds. Normally, these organic compounds are combination of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and other