EVS ASSIGNMENT 2: REPORT ON WATER MANAGEMENT

NAZEEHA NAZNEEN
5C
ROLL NO.: 20

TREATMENT OF WASTEWATER AT CITY LEVEL

Wastewater Treatment Plant is a facility designed to receive the waste from domestic, commercial, and
industrial sources and to remove materials that damage water quality and compromise public health and
safety when discharged into water receiving systems. Th e principal objective of wastewater treatment is
generally to allow human and industrial effluents to be disposed of without danger to human health or
unacceptable damage to the natural environment.
The principal objective of wastewater treatment is generally to allow human and industrial effluents to be
disposed of without danger to human health or unacceptable damage to the natural environment. Irrigation
with wastewater is both disposal and utilization and indeed is an effective form of wastewater disposal (as in
slow-rate land treatment). The design of wastewater treatment plants is usually based on the need to reduce
organic and suspended solids loads to limit pollution of the environment.
PRELIMINARY TREATMENT
The objective of preliminary treatment is the removal of coarse solids and other large materials often found
in raw wastewater. Removal of these materials is necessary to enhance the operation and maintenance of
subsequent treatment units. Preliminary treatment operations typically include coarse screening, grit removal
and, in some cases, commination of large objects. In grit chambers, the velocity of the water through the
chamber is maintained sufficiently high, or air is used, so as to prevent the settling of most organic solids.
Grit removal is not included as a preliminary treatment step in most small wastewater treatment plants.
Comminutors are sometimes adopted to supplement coarse screening and serve to reduce the size of large
particles so that they will be removed in the form of a sludge in subsequent treatment processes. Flow
measurement devices, often standing-wave flumes, are always included at the preliminary treatment stage.
PRIMARY TREATMENT
The objective of primary treatment is the removal of settleable organic and inorganic solids by
sedimentation, and the removal of materials that will float (scum) by skimming. Approximately 25 to 50%
of the incoming biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), 50 to 70% of the total suspended solids (SS), and
65% of the oil and grease are removed during primary treatment. Some organic nitrogen, organic
phosphorus, and heavy metals associated with solids are also removed during primary sedimentation but
colloidal and dissolved constituents are not affected. The effluent from primary sedimentation units is
referred to as primary effluent.
SECONDARY TREATMENT
The objective of secondary treatment is the further treatment of the effluent from primary treatment to
remove the residual organics and suspended solids. In most cases, secondary treatment follows primary
treatment and involves the removal of biodegradable dissolved and colloidal organic matter using aerobic
biological treatment processes. Aerobic biological treatment is performed in the presence of oxygen by
aerobic microorganisms (principally bacteria) that metabolize the organic matter in the wastewater, thereby
producing more microorganisms and inorganic end-products (principally CO2 , NH3 , and H2O). Several
aerobic biological processes are used for secondary treatment differing primarily in the manner in which
oxygen is supplied to the microorganisms and in the rate at which organisms metabolize the organic matter.
Common high-rate processes include the activated sludge processes, trickling filters or bio-filters, oxidation
ditches, and rotating biological contractors (RBCs). A combination of two of these processes in series (for
example bio-filter followed by activated sludge) is sometimes used to treat municipal wastewater containing
a high concentration of organic material from industrial sources.
TERTIARY TREATMENT
Tertiary wastewater treatment is employed when specific wastewater constituents which cannot be removed
by secondary treatment must be removed. The treatment processes are necessary to remove nitrogen,
phosphorus, additional suspended solids, refractory organics, heavy metals, and dissolved solids. Because
advanced treatment usually follows high-rate secondary treatment, it is sometimes referred to as tertiary
treatment. However, advanced treatment processes are sometimes combined with primary or secondary
treatment or used in place of secondary treatment

CASE STUDIES
 CHENNAI WASTEWATER TREATMENT

1890: surface drains in the City were connected to Pumping Stations and the wastewater
conveyed for disposal away from inhabitation

1907: The proposal for comprehensive drainage scheme to cater to the needs of a
topographically flat. fast growing city was formulated works were initiated in 1910 and
completed during 1914 in stages Planned to serve 65 lakhs in 1961 at 114 lt per capita water
supply

1956: A fundamental change to this system was made by laying a force man to divert part of
the sewage discharged from the Purasai walkam Pumping Station to Kodungaiyur where the
sewage farm was started.

1978: The Master Plan for Wastewater Management (Sewerage) was formulated to serve the
population expected in 2008. Extension of sewer systems to the newly developed Areas and
improvements to the existing system were carried out based on this Master Plan

1991: The Master Plan was updated to cater to the needs of population expected in 2021 and
the proposal envisages improvement to (a) sewage collection and conveyance system in the
City (b) the sewage treatment & disposal.

The Detailed design and Engineering for sewage collection & conveyance and for the sewage
treatment & disposal were finalized through independent consultants during 1995-1998 for
expanding the capacity of sewage collection, conveyance system and treatment & disposal
arrangements to meet the requirement for the population expected in 2021 and due to increase
in the availability of water under Krishna Water Supply Scheme.
The total estimated cost of the proposal was about Rs.1.300.00 crore. Based on this detailed
design and engineering, project proposals were formulated for implementation under Chennai
City River Conservation Project in the year 2000 at the estimated cost of Rs.720.00 crore as
first phase for 2011 sewage flow.

The proposal consists of laying of interceptors 59.2 km. improvements to 28 nos. of pumping
stations, construction of 3 nos. of new pumping stations and laying of sewage pumping mains
28.85 km. gravity conveying main 17.3 km. and expansion of sewage treatment capacity for
264 MLD. These works were commenced in January 2001 and completed in August 2006.

Due to the enhancement of capacity of the 28 sewage pumping stations and construction of 3
new pumping stations, the pumping capacity has been increased from 440 MLD to 575 MLD.
The capacity of the sewerage treatment plants has been increased from reduced. 222 MLD to
486 MLD and the sewage overflow and untreated sewage entering the waterways have been

In the sewage treatment process, bio-gas is produced and is being used to produce power to
run the plants. This incidentally reduces the discharge of Green House Gas into the
atmosphere and provides for Carbon Trading CMWSS Board has adopted Clean
Development Mechanism (CDM) which leads to savings in energy cost to a turn of Rs.43.05
lakhs per month.

The sewage from Purasaiwalkam Pumping Station is being treated and the treated water is
reused for industrial purposes successfully.
 SINGAPORE WASTEWATER TREATMENT

 Singapore - small and densely populated country of about 28.3 million people

o Tropical Climate diseases spread easily.

o Shortage of fresh water sources-conservation required

 To prevent pollution of water courses and spread of diseases, proper collection,

treatment and disposal of sewage necessary

 Late 1800s

o public health and sanitation problems

 Before 1910

o most common method of sewage disposal was the private collection of "night
soil" in buckets

o direct discharge of sewage into open monsoon drains was common

 First Sewage scheme in Singapore

o Started off for the city area in the 1910s Pumping stations al Park Road & River
Valley Road: Alexandra Sewage Disposal Works, A trickling filter treatment
system: Albert Street and Kampong Bahru Pumping Stations were subsequently
constructed
 Intensive sewerage development programme began in the 1960s and accelerated in
the 70s and 80s:

o To meet demand of rapid housing and industrialization programme

o To prevent pollution of watercourses

 Singapore's sewerage system consists of:

o 3,100 km of sewers; 220 km of pumping mains: 132 pumping installations: 30 km

of effluent pipe

 Wastewater is collected and conveyed to 6 Water Reclamation Plants

 NEWater an advance wastewater reclamation, is used in Singapore where roughly
half of all water must be imported from Malaysia which is being bottled & sold in
global market.

 It is treated wastewater (sewage) that has been purified using dual-membrane (via
microfiltration and reverse osmosis) and ultraviolet technologies, in addition to
conventional water treatment processes.
  The water is potable and is consumed by humans. but is mostly used for industry
requiring high purity water. The quality of NEWater consistently exceeds the
requirements set by USEPA and WHO guidelines.
 The first year (2005) cost of desalinated water at Singapore's first desalination plant
was 78 cents per cubic metre. Has been decreased to 45 cents per cubic metre by the
year 2013.

 Apart from producing NEWater, Singapore has adopted FOUR TAP STRATEGY,
which makes Singapore self-reliant in water by 2060

1. MEMBRANE BIOREACTOR (MBR)

 Membrane bioreactors for wastewater treatment is a combination of a suspended growth
biological treatment method, usually activated sludge, with membrane filtration equipment,
typically low-pressure microfiltration (MF) or ultrafiltration (UF) membranes.
The membranes are used to perform the critical solid-liquid separation function.
In activated sludge facilities, this is traditionally accomplished using secondary and tertiary
clarifiers along with tertiary filtration.

The two general types of MBR systems are vacuum (or gravity-driven) and pressure-driven
systems.

- Vacuum or gravity systems are immersed and normally employ hollow fiber or flat sheet
membranes installed in either the bioreactors or a subsequent membrane tank.
- Pressure driven systems are in-pipe cartridge systems located externally to the bioreactor.

An MBR can best be described as the initial step in a biological process where microbes are
used to degrade pollutants that are then filtered by a series of submerged membranes (or
membrane elements).
The individual membranes are housed in units known as modules, cassettes, or racks and a
combined series of these modules are referred to as a working membrane unit. Air is introduced
through integral diffusers to continually scour membrane surfaces during filtration, facilitate
mixing and in some cases, to contribute oxygen to the biological process.

The benefits of MBR includes a reduced footprint, usually 30-50% smaller than an equivalent
conventional active sludge facility with secondary clarifiers and media tertiary filtration. The
process also produces exceptional effluent quality capable of meeting the most stringent water
quality requirements, a modular schematic that allows for ease of expansion and configuration
flexibility, a robust and reliable operation and reduced downstream disinfection requirements.

2.

BIOSWALES
Bioswales are landscape features that collect polluted storm water runoff, soak it into the ground,
and filter out pollution.

Bioswales are similar to rain gardens but are designed to capture much more runoff coming from
larger areas of impervious surfaces like streets and parking lots.

They also have more complicated design features such as layers of engineered soil and gravel,
perforated pipe underdrains, and overflow structures to help handle runoff from bigger storms.

Similar to rain gardens, bioswales use native plants to help absorb more water and prevent
erosion.

BENEFITS OF BIOSWALES

 Beautify your neighbourhood

 Help protect our streams and Lake Michigan from pollution by reducing stormwater
runoff

 Reduce the risk of flooding and drainage problems

 Provide habitat for pollinators and birds

 Improve air quality

3. REED BED TREATMENT SYSTEM

Wastewater treatment systems often produce sludge as a by-product of creating clean water.
Reed beds passively de-water and compost those sludge on-site while eliminating the need for
trucking sludge to a landfill or processing facility. Reed beds utilize regionally native wetland
plants such as reeds, canes, or bulrush to aid in the composting process; leachate is returned to
the treatment system. The reed bed treatment system combines aerobic and anaerobic
decomposition processes in a 1.0 m thick soil or substratum layer. The wastewater percolates the
filter substrate vertically to the bottom drains.

Besides the microbial and fungal decomposition of organic matter and pollutants in the rooted
soil or substrate matrix, chemical and physical precipitation, adsorption and filter processes occur
due to soil constituents like clay minerals and humus particles. This is most important for
phosphate and ammonia binding. Some of the wastewater nitrogen is released out of the
artificial ecosystem to the atmosphere as nitrogenous gases (denitrification).

Through intermittent loading of the reed beds a radical change of oxygen regime is achieved.
After water saturation by feeding with the distribution system a drainage network at the base
collects the purified water. The pore space of the substrate is refilled with air thus enabling
aerobic decomposition processes.

Another part of oxygen transfer into the rhizosphere happens through a special helophyte tissue
in the plant stems and roots (aerenchym) from the air.

Clogging effects of the filter substrates (soil, sand, gravel) are prevented by the continuous
growth and decay of roots and rhizomes of the aquatic macrophytes and the thereby remaining
soil macropores. In this manner, long-term water transport into the soil matrix is guaranteed.

4. QUALITY OF POTABLE WATER

 Getting clean and safe drinking water is the right of every citizen. Unfortunately, the natural
resource that helps in sustaining lives on Earth, is dangerously contaminated. A report by NSO
suggests that two-thirds of Indian homes drink unsafe and untreated water. Only 8% of the
household boil water before drinking, which is not a very efficient way of removing
contaminants. According to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) every country needs to
achieve this goal by 2030. Considering this, the Bureau of Indian Standard has designed a
specific guideline for safe drinking water. However, a recent report showed that 13 metros
receive contaminated water.

According to the Central Ground Water Board, BIS has specifications in Uniform Drinking
Water Quality Monitoring Protocol. This standard has two limits i.e. acceptable limits and
permissible limits in the absence of an alternate source. If any parameter exceeds the limit, the
water is considered unfit for human consumption.

In broad terms, if the water is bacteriology contaminated (E-coli and viruses etc), or if chemical
contamination exceeds maximum permissible limits, the BIS considers that water unfit for
drinking.

The acceptable limit of bacteria and other major contamination are as follows:

Permissible limit
Test parameter Acceptable limit (In the absence of alternate
source of water)
pH value 6.5-8.5 No relaxation
Turbidity 1 5
Total hardness as CaCo3,
200 600
mg/l, Max
Shall not be detectable in any Shall not be detectable in any
E.coli presence/absence
100ml sample 100ml sample
Total iron as Fe, mg/l, Max 0.3 No relaxation
Taste Agreeable Agreeable
Odour Agreeable Agreeable

Provision of safe drinking water keeping in mind health protection has more relevance in
rural India from the point of view of chemical and microbial risk. The most effective means
of ensuring safe drinking water is through the use of water safety plan which effectively
utilizes water quality data in planning preventive and corrective actions.

Keeping in mind the importance of ensuring drinking water quality, the Government of India
has earmarked 3% of state allocation of National Rural Drinking Water Program (NRDWP)
for water quality monitoring and surveillance. This protocol acts as a guidance system on
aspects like minimum infrastructure required for building space, manpower, instrumentation,
sampling and testing procedures etc. This will feed the prevalent urgent need to strengthen
and set up laboratories so that quality of drinking water is ensured.

5. IMPORTANCE OF CONTOUR TRENCHING

 Contour Trenches are a simple, low cost method of checking the velocity of runoff in ridge area
of any watershed. A contour trenching is excavated trench along a uniform level across the slope
of land in the top portion of catchment. Trench along contour line increases retention of runoff
for a longer period within the trench and significant reduction in soil erosion. Contour trenching
should be carried out perpendicular to the slope. Contour trenches also can be laid as staggered.
Contour trenches are widely adopted in soil conservation works.

The contour trenches are similar to continuous trench except it follows the prevailing contour of
the area. In contour trenches, the horizontal interval are varying unlike continuous trenches.
However, vertical interval is fixed usually kept at 3-5 meters. This type of trenches are little
difficult to construct but has the advantages over the continuous trenches in terms of consistent
soil deposition and hence easy maintenance and less risk of failure.

The practice has been proved to reduce fertilizer loss, power and time consumption, and wear on
machines, as well as to increase crop yields and reduce erosion. Contour farming can help absorb
the impact of heavy rains, which in straight-line planting often wash away topsoil. Contour
farming is most effective when used in conjunction with such practices as strip cropping,
terracing, and water diversion.

6. DECENTRALIZED WASTE WATER TREATMENT SYSTEM (DEWATS)

Decentralised systems are small, individual or cluster type wastewater facilities to provide
wastewater treatment services to residents. In the decentralised wastewater treatment systems,
wastewater can be treated onsite through aerobic and anaerobic techniques. The anaerobic
modules comprise of settlers, baffle reactors and anaerobic filters. The aerobic modules have
horizontal planted gravel filters and polishing ponds. This approach is based on different natural
treatment techniques, put together in different combinations according to need. It is used for
recycling both “grey” and “black” domestic wastewater. This systems include:

- Primary treatment, which includes pre-treatment and sedimentation in settlement tank or

septic tank;

- Secondary anaerobic treatment in baffled reactors;

- Tertiary aerobic/anaerobic treatment in reed bed system; and polishing in Ponds

ADVANTAGES
 Decentralized system – useful in areas with space constraint
 Low operation and maintenance cost
 Does not require skilled human resources for operation.
 Re-use of treated water
 Low/Nil post installation management burden
DEVELOPMENT/ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
 Reduction in water body pollution - direct impact on community health
 Improved air quality and reduction in greenhouse gases.
SALIENT FEATURES
 Simple, Flexible, Decentralized
 Only physical and biological system. Works without technical energy.
 Suitable for household, institutional level, village/city level
 Treatment from 1,000 - 500,000 litres.
 Space Required: 15-20 sq mt per 1000 litre
 Low operation and maintenance cost
 Operates without skilled manpower
 Possible use of water after treatment: agriculture, building construction, ground water
recharge, fish pond, domestic use like flushing.