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Using outdated systems in sewage treatment can lead to adverse effects on the environment and financial loss to companies due to their inapplicability to changing climate conditions.
FREMONT, CA: The wastewater is adding around 6.2 million tonnes of nitrogen to coastal waters annually along with unknown amounts of other pollutants ranging from pharmaceuticals to microplastics. All these are causing a detrimental impact on human health and the environment. Wastewater pollution is destabilising the earth’s safe operating systems. Wastewater releases are largely polluting the freshwater oceans and land with nutrient overloads and other contaminants, harming biodiversity and even worsening the climate crisis.
However, there is a myriad of technologies and innovations being implemented and tested to tackle the issue of wastewater pollution. Every successful small solution can be extended globally, which will present an opportunity to begin rectifying multiple planetary boundary breaches. Therefore, continuous efforts are made around the globe not only to treat wastewater and provide adequate sanitation but also to recover and reuse the essential nutrients and freshwater that are released as waste.
Antiquated Infrastructure and Climate Risks
Inadequate waste treatment strategies are not just a problem in developing countries–many developed countries also use outdated wastewater treatment systems that lead to serious conundrums. Combined sewage overflow (CSO) is one such concerning issue that arose due to a treatment system design flaw. There were citywide devices that sent waste and stormwater through the same pipes, which operated fine until there was increased rainfall. However, rainfall was frequent due to climate change. Then the surge of unclean water bypassed these sewage treatment plants, sending thousands of litres of raw or partially treated sewage water into lakes, rivers, and oceans.
Therefore, CSOs have become a critical concern for water pollution in many regions. These incidents require huge amounts of money to fix and hence are a financial burden in many countries. However, an expensive solution for maintenance is the construction of deep tunnels, which expand sewer storage capacity and provide sufficient time for water to be treated and disposed of properly during heavy rain and storm events. Such systems have also been executed in various cities, but at a high cost for implementation.
These large-scale expenditures cannot be counted on to stop sewage outflows and are susceptible to being overcome by the more frequent harsh weather or climate change. Many countries are advancing their deep tunnel construction intending to alleviate CSO releases. Yet, some concern rising precipitation over future decades will exceed the new tunnel’s capacity. Climate forecasts predict further extreme precipitation occurrences.
Therefore, other solutions are highly necessary. Some of the more expensive alternatives include improved wastewater flow monitoring, separating storm and sewage pipe systems from one another; and expanding treatment facilities. Rapid water treatment technologies are also being developed. As there is no specific solution to the CSO problem, a host of initiatives must be taken to curb the larger impact of the issue.
