Different levels of treatment can produce high-quality effluent ideal for industries from agriculture to oil and gas.
05/13/2015
Sewage treatment plants play a significant role in urban expansion. In the coming years, effluent will become an essential source of water for municipal use. Population growth, increasing living standards in developing countries and migration into cities all contribute to water stress throughout the world. Reclaimed wastewater is the key to unlocking the potential for more non-potable water sources for urban, industrial and groundwater recharge needs.
Challenges & Opportunities
Wastewater reuse is an intelligent, responsible solution for many countries, including those in the Middle East and North Africa, to manage water scarcity challenges. Reuse systems make municipal wastewater a resource available to several industries. The right treatment process can match the exact effluent quality required for the selected application.Wastewater reuse can provide benefits for several water-intensive industries. (Graphics courtesy of Xylem Inc.)
The water reuse treatment process can involve several steps depending on the targeted quality level of effluent required for the application.
While wastewater treatment technology is available, the reuse of effluent water is not a simple process. Different reuse technologies can have fewer environmental benefits than others depending on life-cycle factors. These technologies also must prove their economic advantage compared with traditional water use.
Despite these challenges, the effluent from reclaimed wastewater provides significant advantages for several industries. In many cases, the wastewater contaminants can be properly recycled into fertilizers for agricultural use. This reduces the need to disperse more chemicals for crops.
Direct reuse of wastewater requires a more stringent removal process of emergent contaminants. Those contaminants are pharmaceuticals and endocrine substances that are naturally released after consumption. Oxidation processes are required to remove these contaminants beyond standard tertiary treatment.
The challenge for reuse solution suppliers is to ensure that the offered product reaches the target treatment level without over-performing.