Sewage Treatment

Essential for life, clean water is one of the most important natural resources on the planet.
w​astewater​, which is basically used water, is also a valuable resource, especially with recurring
droughts and water shortages in many areas of the world. However, sewage water contains many
harmful substances and cannot be released back into the environment until it is treated.
Sewage treatment remains a challenge for Costa Rica, a country known for being a world
leader in the ecological field, but it’s estimated that only the 4% of the wastewater generated by the
urban population with sewage is treated 1​​ ..

Summary
The raw domestic sewage and some of the industrial effluents are generally discharged in
rivers or sea, however, those sewage have several toxic pollutants and, although the natural biological
action of aquatic microorganisms decompose the chemical pollutants, current demand on limited
supplies and the time available is insufficient, so, it’s required some method to purifying the effluent.
Therefore, to remove the toxic chemicals there are Sewage Treatment Plants. Those plants may treat
some industrial effluent but their main function is the treatment of domestic effluent. The plant carries
out the necessary treatment process to produce water which is safe for direct discharge into the river
or sea. There are four main stages of treatment in a typical sewage treatment plant and also these
plants are categorised into one of three types, based on the method of secondary treatment: Biological
Filter, Activated Sludge, and Pasveer Ditch.

Key Words: ​Sewage, Sewage treatment plant, effluent, water discharged, river discharge.

Glossary

● Sewage: ​is a type of waste water that is produced by a community of people.

● Sewage Treatment Plant: ​a place where sewage is cleaned so that it is not harmful or
dangerous to the environment
● Anaerobic conditions: The complete absence, or temporary absence, of gaseous or dissolved
elemental oxygen in a given environment.
● Nitrification ​: the oxidation of ammonium salts to nitrites and the further oxidation of nitrites
to nitrates.
● Aeration: is the process by which air is circulated through, mixed with or dissolved in a liquid
or substance.
● Macerator: Maceration (sewage), machine that reduces solids to small pieces.
● Sewers: ​an underground conduit for carrying off drainage water and waste matter.

Conclusion with recommendations

Wastewater, properly treated, is a source of water for many purposes. Good wastewater
treatment allows the maximum amount of water to be reused instead of going to waste. Wastewater
treatment is fundamental to protect the health of many different ecosystems. Also, it's necessary a
greater awareness of the problem of sewage treatment is required and more resources must be invested
in treatment plants in urban areas. Urban river pollution is perhaps the most serious problem related to
urban water.
 Fig. 1 Typical Sewage Treatment Process

1-IANAS The Inter-American Network of Academies of Sciences. (2015). Urban Water Challenges in
the Americas. México: IANAS and UNESCO. Retrieved from
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Angel_Munoz5/publication/275354257_Urban_Waters_in_Cost
a_Rica/links/553abb4f0cf245bdd76448be/Urban-Waters-in-Costa-Rica.pdf