Process of removing contaminants from municipal wastewater
This article is about the treatment of municipal wastewater. For the treatment of any type of wastewater, see wastewater treatment.
Sewage treatment plants (STPs) come in many different sizes and process configurations. Clockwise from top left: Aerial photo of Kuryanovo activated sludge STP in Moscow, Russia; Constructed wetlands STP near Gdansk, Poland; Waste stabilization ponds STP in the South of France; Upflow anaerobic sludge blanket STP in Bucaramanga, Colombia.
Sewage treatment
Synonym
Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), water reclamation plant
Position in sanitation chain
Treatment
Application level
City, neighborhood[1]
Management level
Public
Inputs
Sewage, could also be just blackwater (waste), greywater[1]
Outputs
Effluent, sewage sludge, possibly biogas (for some types)[1]
Types
List of wastewater treatment technologies
Environmental concerns
Water pollution, Environmental health, Public health, sewage sludge disposal issues
Sewage treatment (or domestic wastewater treatment, municipal wastewater treatment) is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable to discharge to the surrounding environment or an intended reuse application, thereby preventing water pollution from raw sewage discharges.[2] Sewage contains wastewater from households and businesses and possibly pre-treated industrial wastewater. There are a high number of sewage treatment processes to choose from. These can range from decentralized systems (including on-site treatment systems) to large centralized systems involving a network of pipes and pump stations (called sewerage) which convey the sewage to a treatment plant. For cities that have a combined sewer, the sewers will also carry urban runoff (stormwater) to the sewage treatment plant. Sewage treatment often involves two main stages, called primary and secondary treatment, while advanced treatment also incorporates a tertiary treatment stage with polishing processes and nutrient removal. Secondary treatment can reduce organic matter (measured as biological oxygen demand) from sewage, using aerobic or anaerobic biological processes. A so-called quarternary treatment step (sometimes referred to as advanced treatment) can also be added for the removal of organic micropollutants, such as pharmaceuticals. This has been implemented in full-scale for example in Sweden.[3]
A large number of sewage treatment technologies have been developed, mostly using biological treatment processes. Design engineers and decision makers need to take into account technical and economical criteria of each alternative when choosing a suitable technology.[4]: 215 Often, the main criteria for selection are: desired effluent quality, expected construction and operating costs, availability of land, energy requirements and sustainability aspects. In developing countries and in rural areas with low population densities, sewage is often treated by various on-site sanitation systems and not conveyed in sewers. These systems include septic tanks connected to drain fields, on-site sewage systems (OSS), vermifilter systems and many more. On the other hand, advanced and relatively expensive sewage treatment plants may include tertiary treatment with disinfection and possibly even a fourth treatment stage to remove micropollutants.[3]
At the global level, an estimated 52% of sewage is treated.[5] However, sewage treatment rates are highly unequal for different countries around the world. For example, while high-income countries treat approximately 74% of their sewage, developing countries treat an average of just 4.2%.[5]
The treatment of sewage is part of the field of sanitation. Sanitation also includes the management of human waste and solid waste as well as stormwater (drainage) management.[6] The term sewage treatment plant is often used interchangeably with the term wastewater treatment plant.[4][page needed][7]
^ abc"Sanitation Systems – Sanitation Technologies – Activated sludge". SSWM. 27 April 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
^Khopkar, S.M. (2004). Environmental Pollution Monitoring And Control. New Delhi: New Age International. p. 299. ISBN 978-81-224-1507-0.
^ abTakman, Maria; Svahn, Ola; Paul, Catherine; Cimbritz, Michael; Blomqvist, Stefan; Struckmann Poulsen, Jan; Lund Nielsen, Jeppe; Davidsson, Åsa (15 October 2023). "Assessing the potential of a membrane bioreactor and granular activated carbon process for wastewater reuse – A full-scale WWTP operated over one year in Scania, Sweden". Science of the Total Environment. 895: 165185. Bibcode:2023ScTEn.895p5185T. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165185. ISSN 0048-9697. PMID 37385512. S2CID 259296091.
^ abCite error: The named reference Marcos2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abJones, Edward R.; van Vliet, Michelle T. H.; Qadir, Manzoor; Bierkens, Marc F. P. (2021). "Country-level and gridded estimates of wastewater production, collection, treatment and reuse". Earth System Science Data. 13 (2): 237–254. Bibcode:2021ESSD...13..237J. doi:10.5194/essd-13-237-2021. ISSN 1866-3508.
^"Sanitation". Health topics. World Health Organization. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
^George Tchobanoglous; H. David Stensel; Ryujiro Tsuchihashi; Franklin L. Burton; Mohammad Abu-Orf; Gregory Bowden, eds. (2014). Metcalf & Eddy Wastewater Engineering: Treatment and Resource Recovery (5th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Education. ISBN 978-0-07-340118-8. OCLC 858915999.
Sewagetreatment (or domestic wastewater treatment, municipal wastewater treatment) is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants...
Sewage sludge treatment describes the processes used to manage and dispose of sewage sludge produced during sewagetreatment. Sludge treatment is focused...
wastewater treatment plant. For domestic wastewater (also called municipal wastewater or sewage), the treatment plant is called a SewageTreatment. For industrial...
Sewage can be distinguished into "untreated sewage" (also called "raw sewage") and "treated sewage" (also called "effluent" from a sewagetreatment plant)...
wastewater (sewage) flows for basic sewagetreatment. Settling and anaerobic digestion processes reduce solids and organics, but the treatment efficiency...
combined sewer or sanitary sewer. Sewerage ends at the entry to a sewagetreatment plant or at the point of discharge into the environment. It is the...
Sewage sludge is the residual, semi-solid material that is produced as a by-product during sewagetreatment of industrial or municipal wastewater. The...
were killed in an explosion at the water treatment plant. The 10-hectare (25-acre) Avonmouth SewageTreatment Works is managed as a nature reserve by Wessex...
account for approximately 25% of all domestic wastewater treatment in the US. Onsite sewage facilities may also be based on small-scale aerobic and biofilter...
Secondary treatment (mostly biological wastewater treatment) is the removal of biodegradable organic matter (in solution or suspension) from sewage or similar...
sewage works effluent quality. The United States includes BOD effluent limitations in its secondary treatment regulations. Secondary sewagetreatment...
to transport sewage and urban runoff together to a sewagetreatment plant or disposal site. This means that during rain events, the sewage gets diluted...
tunnel system for transporting sewage from houses and commercial buildings (but not stormwater) to a sewagetreatment plant or disposal. Sanitary sewers...
smaller sewagetreatment plants around the emirate are also operated by private operators to serve specific districts or neighbourhoods. The sewage plant...
wastewater more convenient. The historical focus of sewagetreatment was on the conveyance of raw sewage to a natural body of water, e.g. a river or ocean...
treatment of domestic waste water in India. The problem is not only that India lacks sufficient treatment capacity but also that the sewagetreatment...
firmly blotted out. Acne treatment Hydrogen peroxide may be used to treat acne, although benzoyl peroxide is a more common treatment. Oral cleaning agent...
treatment is the treatment of wet wastes from factories, mines, power plants and other commercial facilities. Sewagetreatment is the treatment and disposal...
screenplay Medical treatment also known as "therapy" Sewagetreatment Surface treatment or surface finishing Water treatment Search for "treatment" on Wikipedia...
activated sludge process is a type of biological wastewater treatment process for treating sewage or industrial wastewaters using aeration and a biological...
wastewater treatment plant. For domestic wastewater (also called municipal wastewater or sewage), the treatment plant is called a SewageTreatment. For industrial...
general considered to be water pollution, such as the outflow from a sewagetreatment facility or an industrial wastewater discharge. An effluent sump pump...
storm sewage entering the river. These discharges, a mixture of raw sewage and rainwater, needed to be cut to comply with the EU's Waste Water Treatment Directive...
for sewage sludge was installed in Hamar, Norway in 1996. Since then, there have been over 30 additional installations globally. Sewagetreatment plants...
a sewagetreatment plant in southwest Los Angeles, California, next to Dockweiler State Beach on Santa Monica Bay. The plant is the largest sewage treatment...
pollution Sewagetreatment History of water supply and sanitation Portals: Ecology Environment Technology Lists "New Delta Water Treatment Plant | The...
Global Information
