Treatment and Disposal of Wastewater Sludges - Literature review Example

Treatment and disposal of wastewater sludge [by] [Name of the organization] [Author’s name] [Date of fulfillment] Introduction In this paper the chief assessment is related to the treatment and the disposal of wastewater sludge. As the wastewater is the root cause to many kinds of diseases, it is very important to have proper speculation over the issue of treating the wastewater and to dispose it, to prevent any kinds of epidemic. The analyses as has been forwarded here are very much related to the legislative participations initiated by the UK and EU environmental legislation. The UK and EU environmental legislation have come up with all kinds of novel and very latest means to deal with the wastewater sludge. The features are well scrutinized through the proceedings initiated by N. F. Gray. In his ‘Water Technology’ had made a very dominant approach to the issue. The second edition is basically concentrating over the Water Framework Directive with relevance to a wide discussion over the ‘Sustainable principles in water management’1. The analytical feature concentrates over the fact that the treatments of waste water are the sources that can produce a quantity of concentrated sludge. As a matter of fact there is the discovery that this particular matter is potentially and extremely polluted. It is through the safe treatment and absolute means to disposal of wastewater sludges that can be well accounted for the determination through a major part in creating the accessibility of operating costs that can well support the wastewater treatment process. The records also show that has got the sludge produced each year in the UK were relevantly transported to tanker. These are then disposed off at the sea without any kind of relevant application of treatment. It was under the initiation led by the EU legislation, that the sea disposals were stopped. As an option to it the water companies were instructed to develop other sustainable option that can well support the treatment procedures and the disposal of the wastewater sludge. Wastewater The concept of Wastewater is related to all kinds of water mass that has been unfavorably affected in quality. These are basically due to the harm caused by anthropogenic influence that comprises of liquid waste that gets discharged by industry, commercial properties, domestic residences, and agriculture. These can encompass through a very wide ranged potential contaminants along with concentrations. The most focused and the most dominant wastewater get initiated by the municipal wastewater that has got the contaminants that are due to the mixing of wastewaters from all kinds of sources. The sewage has been generated through the subset of wastewater that has been discovered to get contaminated with substances like those of feces/urine. However, there are often found to be used for the purpose to mean waste water. The process of "sewage" has got the municipal, domestic and the sources led by the industrial liquid waste products. These are eventually disposed through pipe and sewer and sometimes through the cesspool emptier. The whole functionality related to the sludge separation, along with treatment and disposal has been accounted for 65% in the process of operating costs. This is a determined sector of medium size that has been activated for the sludge plant (Gray, 1999). According to Kiely (1997) sewage sludges can well make a provision for the soil amendment that can have the essential plant nutrients in relative balanced packages. Gray, N.F (2005) in Chapter 21, discusses about the water and wastewater engineering as the world’s biggest industry. He states that it is the most professional among all other single industry sectors. His discussion refers to the incidents of the Water Framework Directive in 2000. As it came under activation, it was considered as the most substantial piece of EC water legislation. The periphery was well extended to the inland and coastal waters and the target is to have the "good status" till the end of 2015. Professor Gray was very particular in making an exclusive reference to the dominant new framework for the implications of all kinds of necessary compliance and relevant practices. The elaborations as has been forwarded by G. Kiely, Elsevier (1997) in Chapter 13, of his ‘Environmental Engineering’ made a remarkable reference towards the management of wastewater. According to him environmental engineering has got a distinctive synthesis of various disciplines. These disciplines further incorporate elements from the fields of Agricultural engineering, Biology, Chemical engineering, Chemistry, Civil engineering, Ecology, Geology, Mechanical engineering and Public health. Its application in terms of science and engineering principles get the reflection from the environment. Environmental engineering is inclusive of the developments relate to the sustainable processes and follows the proceedings instructed by the EU Legislation. As stated by Water Information System for Europe (WISE), under the strict speculation of EU legislation, there is the usability to check the effect led by carbon to nitrogen ratio (C/N), that is the feed on the surface and physical chemically recognized properties in the activated sludge. There is the use of upgraded semi-continuous reactors that has got the proceedings through the 2 liters volume, to get operated in the position of the mean cell residence for 8 days. By the use of these kinds of mixed culture reactors were operated at 3 different carbons to nitrogen ratio. The operation of conventional activated sludge plants treating, the periphery under the municipal wastewater get the specification of the reactors with C/N ratio of 2:1. Through this, carbon and nitrogen get limited in their activity of ongoing with the sludge systems. It is hereby gets initiated through the reactors with C/N ratio of 9:43. As the declarations are made clear regarding C/N ratio, the EU legislation confirms the effect on the physical and the determinant surface chemical properties that are in the activated sludge. The records are also checked in relation to the role played by the microorganism concentration along with the microbial extracellular polymers. These are the elements that produce the state for the increase in the C/N ratio. It has been thus discovered that the sludge gets harder to get into the activity of dewater properties and to settle. It is obvious to become viscous with the increase in the ratio of C/N ratio (N. F. Gray, 2005). European Union The role played by the EU Legislation with the persuasion of the directive on Urban Waste Water Treatment was the major step towards the treatment and the disposal of the wastewater sludge. The Council Directive 91/271/EEC on Urban Waste Water Treatment got the footings on the 21st of May 1991. This was further amended by Commission Directive 98/15/E. It was ultimately the Commission Decision 93/481/EEC that was meant for the Member States who are directed to provide the Commission on the state for the appropriate implementation of the respective Directive. According to the water policy followed by the European Union there is the primary codified that are within three directives. These are noted below- 1. Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) was initiated in 21st of May, 1991. It was completely concentrating over the process of discharging followed by the municipal and the specifically recognized industrial waste waters; 2. Drinking Water Directive of 98/83/EC, initiated on the 3rd of November, 1998 was totally about the adaptability of the potable water quality2; 3. Water Framework Directive of 2000/60/EC initiated on the 23rd of October, 2000 was about the water resources management. The importance was taken seriously by the EU member states. They all enacted on the basis of national legislation to have the rigid follow ups with these directives. It was into the proceedings of institutionalizing the organization related to the public water supply and the maintenance of the sanitation. Though these are specifically not under EU, yet the concern of EU is absolute and remains as the prerogative to each of the member state. treatment, Sewage disposal and Reuse The initiation of EU Legislation has brought in various processes for the clean up of the waste waters. It gets determined through the type and the scrutinized extent of water contamination. The role in this field is played in a major way by wastewater treatment plants that are known as the WWTPs. The WWTPs is inclusive of chemical, biological and physical processes in treating the waste water. The treatments are also initiated by the use of septic tanks and OSSF that is the On-Site Sewage Facilities. The applications of the anaerobic processes are very much appropriate for the industrial wastewaters and the preoccupied biological sludge. There is also the ecological approach that has been followed through the use of reed bed systems through the construction of the wetlands. The modernistic approach has got the tertiary treatment through the upgraded means of micro filtration or as popularly known as the synthetic membranes. Through the proceedings of membrane filtration the wastewater comes under a state of indistinguishable content of waters through the natural origin of drinking quality. It is the means through which the nitrates can be removed by the microbial denitrification. It is done through the use of a small amount of methanol that gets added and makes enough provision of carbon to the bacteria. Through the Ozone Waste Water Treatment, generated through ozone the waste water gets decontaminated into Ozone bubbles. The proceedings as has been followed by EU Legislation get the disposal of wastewaters with all the upgraded modern procedures. Though the treatment in the industrial plant expensive, yet the attempts are never discarded. The residues from the chemical and petrochemical plants and the petroleum refineries are facilitated with the onsite facilities. It has been brought under the local and the national regulations for the disposal of wastewaters into lakes, rivers or the seas, or the community treatment plant. For the implementation of the sewage disposal, the urban areas are under special concentration3. It is through the sanitary sewers and the structured runoff, that the sewage gets carried into the pre-constructed route of storm drains. The passages through the manhole are the route for its accessibilities. As a matter of fact the EU Legislation is well aware of the fact that during the high precipitation the sanitary sewer get overflow and cause potential threat to public health and unproductive ecological damage. The whole proceedings of sewage system are well structured through the process of draining into major watersheds. This is very minimal in action and has got no treatment. The after affects of the untreated sewage is a threat to the whole society and can have very serious impacts over the quality and maintenance of a healthy environmental set up. This will also lead to various diseases in the health of the residents. The possibilities of pathogens can cause all kinds of illnesses. There are some chemicals pose that are the root to the developing risks at a very low concentrations. It is the means that can remain as a threat to public health to a longer period of time. This is due to the bioaccumulation among the interaction that takes place between the animal or human tissue. The provisions are thus so managed that the treated wastewater are reused for the purpose of drinking, industrial cooling towers, for the artificial recharge of all kinds of aquifers. These are also very exclusively used in agriculture. An amount of 70% of these treated water in Israel get used for the purpose to irrigated agriculture. This is very much based on highly purified wastewater. The most effective use is in making the rehabilitation of natural ecosystems like those of Florida's Everglades. Implementation challenges The Water Framework Directive Implementation Report is for all the proceedings that are related to treatment, sewage disposal and the reuse were initiated by EU Legislation. However these are not achieved that easily. There were lots of challenges in its way. As per the Commission Decision 93/481/EEC, all the Member States were asked to make provision for the Commission for the implementation of the regulated Directive. There were three report published by the European Commission for the implementation of the directive. According to these reports the wastewater treatment needs to be considered as a situation that persists in Europe, is considerably unsatisfactory. Added to this there were instances when none of the deadlines were met by any of the member states. The participation of Denmark, Austria, and Germany were initially considered as fully complied to the directive. The report states, the BOD levels in the European rivers have reduced by 20 to 30 percent after the enactment of the directive. However the, the parameters of the nitrogen levels were found to be at a higher state. This is due to the fact that nitrogen pollution that occurs is from the non-point sources in the fields of agriculture. There are insufficient nutrient removals that are caused by the wastewater treatment plants initiated by the EU Legislation directives. The application of the process of eutrophication in the levels of the North Sea, Baltic Sea and in the Mediterranean still is under the perspective of being "severe problem". The report estimated that there are innumerable consequences that are more than 50 percent of the total discharge that ranges as the sensitive areas were never treated in a very sufficient manner. The considerations for the non-sensitive areas too are under the range of 69% and were under the need of the treatment that had the deadline in 2000. The deadlines were never met, rather most of the countries did not even participated in making an effort for effective consequences. The cooperation level is considerably low. Conclusion Eventually, it can be well concluded that EU provides the considerable support for the appropriate implementation of the regulatory directive. This was to a range of 5 billion Euros per year. However the initiations led by the participant states were comparatively below the expected margin. The efforts as has been determined by EU Legislature are very much upgraded and economically well supported. The terms are structured for the benefits of the local, national and international environmental benefits. The treatment, sewage disposal and the reuse facilities are the core factors that needs to be well initiated. The framework is to make the environment clean and hygienic. There are instances when the expenditures are well generated in terms of making the organization work as per the directives. There has been a drastic development by the follow ups of the directives. However the plans are still very rigid and are meant to be met by 20154. The initiations led by EU Legislature are very dominant. There are lots of scopes that are to be met. The contribution of the member states is very necessary. It is here that the usage of the directives needs to be followed. References Elsevier. Kiely, G. (1997), Environmental engineering, Chapter 13, McGraw-Hill Europe paves the way for revision of the Drinking Water Directive, Water 21, Journal of the International Water Association, August 2006, p. 18 N. F. Gray, Water Technology, Second Edition: An Introduction for Environmental Scientists and Engineers, Butterworth-Heinemann; 2 edition (July 5, 2005) UK Environment Agency website on the EU water framework directive, http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/business/444217/444663/955573/955741/?version=1&lang=_e [retrieved 2nd of Dec. 2008] Water Framework Directive Implementation Report, http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/water-framework/implrep2007/pdf/sec_2007_0362_en.pdf [retrieved 2nd of Dec. 2008] Water Information System for Europe (WISE), http://water.europa.eu/content/view/20/36/lang,en/ [retrieved 2nd of Dec. 2008] Read More