INDUSTRIAL WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT

LECTURE 1

POLLUTION CYCLE

Source

Distribution

Reception

It consists of three stages which are

1) Source
2) Distribution
3) Reception

Source

The processing industries are the main source of the pollutants due to chemical reactions which
occur whenever manufacturing a product.

POLLUTION PREVENTION (REDUCTION/ELIMINATION)

There are two ways by which pollution can be prevented or reduced completely i.e

(i) Pollution can be prevented right from the source

(ii) Pollution can be prevented or reduced upon discharge of the plant or factory.
Pollution Prevention at the Source

Source Reduction

There are two types of wastes minimization that should take place at the source of their
generation to further the goals of a pollution prevention program:

1. Minimize the total quantity, or mass, of wastes.

2. Minimize the toxicity of wastes. In general, reduction of wastes, both in quantity and
toxicity, at the source is done by thorough and intense application of the following
techniques:
• Immaculate housekeeping
• Substitution of nontoxic substances for toxic substances
• Changing manufacturing processes and/or equipment
• Recycle (and reuse)
• Waste exchanges
• The use of water-based rather than oil-based paints. (Eliminates the need for
hydrocarbons for clean-up.)
• The use of nonphenolics containing industrial detergents rather than those that
contain phenolics.
• The use of water-soluble cleaning agents rather than organic solvents.
3. Changing Manufacturing Processes and/or Equipment

Many products can be manufactured by use of two or more alternative processes. Often, one of
the process types involves the use of substances of less toxicity than the others. In addition,
within any single process type, there is usually a choice to make among several sources for the
equipment, and one type may be more desirable from a pollution prevention standpoint than
others. For instance, an item of equipment that is air-cooled might perform as well as an item
that is water-cooled, and would thus preclude the need to discharge wasted cooling water. Of
course, it should be ascertained that the air used to cool the equipment would not become
degraded in quality before a decision is made regarding replacement. In cases where equipment
is old, worn, and subject to leaks, spills, and inefficient use of materials, it might be cost
effective to replace it, based on the savings in cost of materials, cost of operation, and cost of
handling and disposing of the wastes. Here, again, a comprehensive and accurate materials
balance around the entire life cycle of the product, from initial development to final disposal, is
needed to make the correct decisions. Cleaning is one of the processes within an industrial
system that almost always produces wastes that must be handled and disposed of. Often, the
clean-up wastes contain the same substances as the production wastes, plus whatever substances
the cleaning agent(s) are composed of.

Recycle (and Reuse)

Parentheses are placed around the words “and reuse” here because, although it is recognized
that these words have traditionally been used in conjunction with recycle, it is difficult to
imagine allowing recycled process water, for instance, to simply pile up after being recycled, for
want of being reused. At any rate, recycling of process materials, such as water, after
nonconsumptive use in one or more processes, is certainly superior to once-through use. Even if
some degree of treatment is required before a second or many reiterative uses, that may be much
less costly than the once-through use approach. The quality of water, in terms of conventional
and/or priority or other pollutants, may not need to be nearly as “good” for the industrial process
as for discharge within compliance regarding an NPDES or other permit. Therefore, treatment
for recycle purposes might be less costly than treatment for discharge. Additionally, if the plant’s
freshwater supply has to be treated before use in the process, it might be less expensive to treat
the wastewater and reuse it rather than treat the wastewater for discharge, in addition to treating
more fresh water for once-through use. There is a limit to the extent to which water, or any other
substance, can be recycled because water evaporates and leaves non-volatile substances, such as
salts, behind. The result is that nonvolatile substances build up, increasing one or more
undesirable characteristics such as corrosivity and/or scaling.

Distribution

This is how the pollutants are dispersed into the air, but the dispersion of pollutants depend upon
the existing meteorological conditions. ie. Wind, temperature etc. and also the height of the
chimney or stack. E.g. If the chimney is short, such that when the pollutants are discharged, they
are just on the surface of the ground it means that;

(i) Temperature effect – when the temperatures are very low, the gases will be very dense
hence they will remain on the surface close to the ground. When the temperatures are
 very high the gases will be less dense hence the pollutants will be blown up high in the
sky and will not affect the surroundings.

(ii) When its windy - when the pollutants are discharged, they will simply be blown in the
direction of the wind, therefore it is important to take note of the direction of the wind
whenever setting up of the plant to avoid the wind being blown from the plant to where
there are residential areas.

Reception

This is when the air pollutants are taken in by the living organisms or absorbed by rocks, water
and any other non-living organisms,etc.

Government move on Pollution

The government should also be involved in the formulation of policies for pollution prevention
as well as

INCORPORATING POLLUTION PREVENTION INTO EMA

See attached (EMA STATUATORY INSTRUMENTATION 72 of 2009)

The goal of EMA is to control and regulate the discharges of pollutants into the air, in
accordance with the Statutory instruments 72 of 2009 on pollution prevention.