ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

CASE STUDY #6: MAGIC BULLET

Name:
David, Patricia Laine L.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources had promised to come down hard on Company X if it violates its
Effluent Standards one more time, and Amy is on the spot. It is her treatment works, and she is expected to operate it. Her
requests for improvements and expansion had been turned down, and she had been told that the treatment works had
sufficient capacity to treat the waste. This is true, if the average flow is used in the calculation.

Unfortunately, the manufacturing operation is such that slug flows could come unexpectedly, and the biological system
simply cannot adapt fast enough. The effluent BOD can shoot sky high for a few days, and then settle back again below the
Effluent standards. If DENR shows up on one of the days during the upset, she is in big trouble.

One day she is having lunch with a friend of hers, Sandra, who works in the quality control lab. Amy complains to Sandra
about her problem. If only she could figure out how to reduce the upsets when the slug loads come in. She has already talked
to the plant manager to get him to assure her that the slug loads would not occur, or to build an equalization basin, but both
requests were denied.

Sandra: The slug load is not your problem. It’s the high BOD that results from the slug load upsetting your plant.

Amy: Ok, girl. But that doesn’t help me.

Sandra: Well, maybe I can. Your problem is that you are running high BOD, and you need to reduce it. Suppose I told you that
you could reduce the BOD by simply bleeding a chemical additive into the line, and that you can add as much of this
chemical as you need to reduce your BOD. Would you buy it?

Amy: Just for fun, suppose I would. What is this chemical?

Sandra: I have been playing around with a family of chemicals that slows down microbial metabolism, but does not kill the
microbes. If you add this stuff to your line following the final clarifier, your effluent BOD will be reduced because the
metabolic activity of the microbes will be reduced; hence, they will use less oxygen. You can set up a small can of it
and whenever you see one of those slugs coming down from manufacturing you start to bleed in this chemical. Your
BOD will stay within the effluent limits, and in a few days when things have calmed down, you turn it off. Even if DENR
comes to visit, there is no way they can detect it. You are doing nothing illegal. You are simply slowing down the
metabolic activity.

Amy: But is this stuff toxic?

Sandra: No, not at all. It shows no detrimental effect in bioassay tests. You want to try it out?

Amy: Wait a minute. This is complicated. If we use this magic bullet of yours, our BOD will be depressed, we pass DENR
inspection, but we haven’t treated the wastewater. The oxygen demand will still occur in the stream.

Sandra: Yes, but many miles and many days downstream. They will never be able to associate your discharge with a fish kill,
if, in fact, this would occur. What do you say? Want to give it a try?

Assuming that it is highly unlikely that Amy will ever get caught adding this chemical to the effluent, why should she not do it?
What values is she struggling with? Who are the parties involved, and what stakes do they have in her decision? Discuss all
her options, including those that were disapproved. Which one do you recommend?

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 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

Upon reading the case stated above I have come to understand that Amy still shouldn’t do it because as Sandra said,
the chemical only slows down the microbial metabolism and does not actually kill the microbes. Sandra also stated that the
slug load was not the problem but was the high BOD that results from the slug load therefore, the problem is the amount of
microbes that are present in the wastewater to be treated. This is only good for when the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources suddenly visits and inspects the wastewater treatment however, using this chemical does not actually
treat the wastewater.

Despite the fact that we assume that it is highly unlikely that Amy will get caught adding this chemical to the
effluent, it still goes against her values of honesty. She might also feel guilty because they will pass the inspection however, in
her mind she knows that the wastewater is still not treated properly. Because of this, oxygen demand is still present in the
stream which affects when the water goes into the downstream. If the wastewater is not treated properly, this could affect
the ecosystem and the fishes where the water goes to.

The parties that are involved are the DENR, Company X, and her conscience. Is she willing to risk the unknown
effects of the chemical to the fishes and the wastewater itself to be able to pass the inspection of the DENR if they visit to
save her Company? Her options are to use the magic bullet, convince the company to fix the wastewater treatment by
expansion or by building an equalization basin, or do nothing and explain to the DENR what happens when slug flows
unexpectedly. Of all the options that she has, I think the best way to resolve the problem is to build an equalization basin to
ensure that when slug flows unexpectedly, the treatment reactors have the sufficient capacity to treat the waste. I chose this
option because this is what should and must be done to treat the water and to not affect the company for violating the
effluent standards.

To conclude my discussion, the magic bullet should not be used by Amy by any means because this goes against
honesty and there is a possibility that the fishes will die due to the improper treatment of the wastewater which didn’t
properly remove the microbes in the water. Because of this, Amy should ensure that an equalization basin will be built in the
treatment reactors so that the water is properly treated to save the company and Amy.

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