Reduce - reuse - recycle

Introduction
• Wastewater is generally divided into two categories: black water and gray water.
• Black water refers to toilet waste and gray water refers to the remaining
wastewater from sinks, showers, laundry, etc.
•The septic tank provides primary treatment of both types of wastewater by
settling out the solids and providing space for floating scum to be retained.
Relatively clear, but not clean, water is discharged from the septic tank to the
absorption field. The soil provides for further treatment when the waste water
percolates through the soil profile.
• Untreated or improperly treated wastewater contains biological contaminants
known to cause disease.
• Wastewater is not safe to drink, and discharging this water directly into the
environment (onto the ground or into a water body) can pose health and safety
problems.
• After all, this water is part of the water cycle and will eventually make its way
into a source for our water supply. The wastewater must be properly managed to
protect human and environmental health and safety.
Characteristics of waste water

 Temperature
• Changes in waste water temperatures affect the settling rates, dissolved oxygen levels, and
biological action.
• The temperature of wastewater becomes extremely important in certain wastewater
operations has sedimentation tanks and re-circulating filters.
 Color
• The color of waste water containing Dissolved Oxygen (DO) is normally gray. Black – colored
waste water usually accompanied by foul odors, containing little or no DO , is said to be septic.
Color Problem indicated
Gray -
Red Red Blood or other industrial wastes or TNT complex
Green, Yellow Industrial wastes not pretreated (paints etc.)
Brown or other soil color Surface runoff into effluent, also industrial flows
Black Septic conditions or industrial flows
 Odor
•Domestic waste water have a musty odor. Bubbling gas and foul odor may indicate industrial
wastes, anaerobic (septic) conditions.
Think about this three ways:-
Reduce the amount of the Earth's resources that we use.
Reuse Don't just bin it, could someone else make use of it?
Recycle Can the materials be made into something new? 
Reduce
•Reduce: to make something smaller or use less, resulting in a smaller amount of
waste.
•“Source reduction” is reducing waste before you purchase it, or by purchasing
products that are not wasteful in their packaging or use.
•A key part of waste “reduction” is “conservation”- using natural resources wisely,
and using less than usual in order avoid waste.
•can reduce the amount of waste you create by choosing what rubbish you throw
away. This can be easy and fun - just follow the simple guidelines to reduce your
waste at home, school or work.
1. Turn off the taps
Don't let your water consumption run out
of control. Save 6 litres of water a minute
by turning off your tap while you brush your
teeth. Fix leaky taps  too – and stop what
could be 60 litres of water going straight
down the drain every week.

2. Quality and seasonal eating

Rearing animals for meat and dairy and
harvesting crops like avocado at a large and
unsustainable scale is incredibly water-
intensive. By cutting down on meat and
dairy and eating seasonal vegetables you'll be
helping to conserve water.
You'll also be helping to protect the climate.
The meat and dairy industries are big
contributors to global warming.
3. Shower with less
Every minute you spend in a power shower
uses up to 17 litres of water . Set a timer on
your phone to keep your showers short, sweet
and water-saving.
Switching to an efficient shower head will
allow you to lather up in less water, which
means you'll save water and cut your bills.

4. Save up your dirty clothes

Washing a full machine load of
clothes uses less water and
energy than 2 half-loads . This
means lower bills as well.
5. Get a low-flush toilet
The average UK household flushes the
loo 5,000 times per year . Modern dual-
flush systems save huge amounts of
water. They use just 6 litres – or 4 with a
reduced flush – much less than the 13
litres for each old-style single flush.
If you can't invest in a new loo, get
a water-saving bag for your old-style
toilet .

6. Reduce food waste

It takes a lot of water to produce our cereal,
fruit and other food.
More than half of the 7 million tonnes of food
and drink UK households bin every year could
be eaten. Wasting less food could save
you £540 a year .
Get some handy advice from Love Food Hate
Waste , or get inspired by high-tech solutions
to food waste  from around the world.
7. Catch rainwater
Installing water butts saves up to 5,000
litres of water a year . And your plants
will thank you for rainwater rather than
treated tap water.
You can also cut water use by 33% by
watering plants manually instead of
using automatic sprinklers.

8. Turn off the tap while washing your face,

brushing your teeth and shaving
Don’t think that keeping the tap on while doing
these things takes up that much water? Plug
the drain sometime and see just how much is
collected in the sink. Multiply that over 365
days, likely a few times a day. That’s a lot of
water.
9. Time your gardening
Water outdoor plants in the early morning or
at the end of the day to stop water
immediately evaporating in sunlight and heat.
Water the soil so that the liquid goes straight
to the roots, where it’s needed.
In a heatwave, animals need water too. Instead
of watering your lawn, leave out a water-filled
container, like a casserole dish, for birds to
drink from and wash. Thirsty bees and other
insects will need a saucer or bowl with water
and stones in it.

10. Check for Leaks

A dripping faucet can waste 20 gallons of water
a day. A leaking toilet can use 90,000 gallons of
water in a month. Get out the wrench and
change the washers on your sinks and
showers, or get new washerless faucets.
Keeping your existing equipment well
maintained is probably the easiest and
cheapest way to start saving water.
What is Wastewater Reuse
The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) defines wastewater
reuse as, “using wastewater or
reclaimed water from one
application for another application.
A common type of recycled water is
water that has been reclaimed from
municipal wastewater (sewage).”  
Reasons for Wastewater Reuse

The most common reasons for

establishing a wastewater reuse
program is to identify new water
sources for increased water demand
and to find economical ways to meet
increasingly more stringent discharge
standards
Types of Reuse
• Urban reuse-the irrigation of public
parks, school yards , highway medians,
and residential landscapes, as well as for
fire protection and toilet flushing in
commercial and industrial buildings.
• Agricultural reuse-irrigation of non food
crops, such as fodder and fiber ,
commercial nurseries, and pasture lands.
High-quality reclaimed water is used to
irrigate food crops.
• Recreational impoundments-such as
pond sand lakes.
• Environmental reuse-creating artificial
wetlands, enhancing natural wetlands,
and sustaining stream flows.
• Industrial reuse-process or makeup
water and cooling tower water. 
Rainwater collected from rooftops is cleaner than stormwater, because stormwater has run
across the ground and become dirtier. Similarly, graywater from showers, bathroom sinks and
washing machines is considered to be cleaner than wastewater, sometimes called
blackwater, from toilets and kitchen sinks. Usually, graywater and wastewater are mixed after
they go down the drain and leave our homes or businesses, so they don't seem very
different. The differences become more important if we want to reuse the water.
Application of Treated Wastewater

•Agricultural Irrigation • Recreational / Environmental

•Crop irrigation Uses
•Commercial nurseries • Lakes & ponds
•Landscape Irrigation • Marsh enhancement
•Parks  School yards • Stream-flow augmentation
•Highway medians • Fisheries
•Golf courses • Non-Potable Urban Uses
•Cemeteries • Fire protection
• Residential • Air conditioning
• Industrial Recycling and Reuse • Toilet flushing
• Cooling water  Boiler feed • Potable Reuse
• Process water • Blending in water supply
• Heavy construction reservoirs
• Groundwater Recharge • Pipe-to-pipe water supply
• Groundwater replenishment
• Saltwater intrusion control
• Subsidence control
Recycle
Water recycling mainly refers to reusing waste water such as from residential,
industrial places, agricultural irrigation, etc. to implement in something
beneficial. Water recycling offers a great deal of benefits for today’s
generation as over use and waste of water led to fresh water shortage. This
not only saves water but also saves money in different effective ways and the
treated water becomes multi-functional.
The type of recycling also depends
on the source of the waste water.
“Grey water”, is the water which
come from non-toilet plumbing, like
basin, shower and taps. “Black
water” is the toilet plumbing water.
Water from kitchen and dishwashers
are categorized as black water
because they contain harsh
chemicals, pathogens and grease.
“Recycled water can satisfy most
water demands, as long as it is
adequately treated to ensure water
quality appropriate for the use”
Benefits
•By recycling water, we conserve fresh water for sensitive aquatic lives. Certain
aquatic plants, animals and fish depends on natural and adequate flow of water,
which when disturbed, pushes these lives to extinctions.
• Recycled water can be used for creating or enhancing wetlands. Wetlands keep a
major role in wildlife and wildfowl habitat, water quality improvement, flood
diminishment, and fisheries breeding grounds, etc.
• Irrigation lands where recycled water is used do not need extra chemical
fertilizers due to the presence of certain nutrients in the waste water. The black
and grey waters are filtered specially for irrigation in a way that it is partially
filtered, allowing plant friendly microbes to remain.
• The cost efficiency and fresh water conservation because of recycling water is
significant.
• Important by-products like electricity and soil amendments, are also generated
during the water recycling process. For example, the recycled water goes through
turbines, which rotate at high speed, converting mechanical energy to electrical
energy.
• Public areas such as parks, golf courses, schools, and roadway greenbelts stay
green, which enhances the quality of life for communities and cut down the
amount of pollution going into waterways.
THANK-YOU