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EUREAU EU 1/2
RECYCLING & REUSE WORKING GROUP
EU1/2-07-WR-40(1) January 2007
WASTEWATER RECYCLING AND REUSE IN EUREAU COUNTRIES:
With Emphasis on Criteria Used
A.N. Angelakis
1
, B. Durham
2
, M.H.F. Marecos do Monte
3
, M. Salgot
4
,
T. Wintgens
5
and
C.Thoeye
6
1
Hellenic Union of Municipal Enter. for Water Supply and Sewerage, 41200 Larissa
and National Foundation for Agricultural Research, Institute of Iraklio, 711 10
Iraklio, Greece
2
Technical Secretary, EUREAU Water Recycling and Reuse Working Group, Veolia
Water, 52 rue dAnjou, 75384 Paris.
3
SANEST - Saneamento da Costa do Estoril S.A., Rua Flor da Murta, 2770-064 Pao
de Arcos, Portugal
4
Edafologia. Facultat de Farmacia, Universitat de Barcelona, Joan XXIII s/n. 08028
Barcelona, Spain.
5
RWTH Aachen, Turmstrasse 46, 52056 Aachen, Germany
6
AQUAFIN,Dijkstraat 8,B-2630 Aartselaar, Belgium
SUMMARY
Among Eureau countries, most of the northern ones traditionally have abundant water
resources, stringent environmental standards and higher water prices. Until the
drought of 2003, 2005 and 2006 the need for additional water supply through the
reuse of treated wastewater is not always seen as a priority, but the protection of the
receiving environment is considered important. However many large cities such as
London and other conurbations in large river basins are dependent upon appropriately
treated wastewater to recharge the surface and groundwater bodies so that a reliable
source of freshwater is available. During dry weather conditions London and Berlin
are dependent on appropriately treated recycled water for 70% of the freshwater
source for potable treatment enabling London to operate with a water availability of
265m3/inhab.yr (Planet Water). Unplanned treated wastewater reuse is common place
as the prime use of treated wastewater is surface water recharge. This surface water
with dilution recharges the groundwater from which most of the water for potable
treatment is abstracted.
The southern Eureau countries with reduced water resources available have benefited
from the additional resources brought by wastewater reuse. This brings significant
advantages to agriculture (e.g. crop irrigation), industry (e.g. cooling water) and
tourism (e.g. wetlands, landscape and golf course irrigation) and through potable
substitution increases the availability of water for potable treatment. There,
wastewater is reused but under very diverse regulatory environments. Therefore,
considering its various potential benefits (protection of water resources, prevention of
coastal pollution, recovery of nutrients for agriculture, augmentation of river-flow,
savings in wastewater treatment, groundwater recharge, source for industry and
sustainability of water resource management, etc.) wastewater reuse can be applied to
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the advantage of both northern and southern Eureau countries. The importance of
wastewater reuse has been clearly prioritised in the Integrated Pollution Prevention
Control legislation (IPPC) for industry as described in the best available techniques
Reference documents (BREF) (IPPC http://eippcb.jrc.es)
In order to take advantage of its full potential in a planned and sustainable way,
Eureau would like to be involved in setting up international good practices and
guidelines related to the reuse of treated wastewater. Such criteria and/or guidelines
would contribute to improved management of water resources, increased protection of
public health and of the environment and sustainable development. This would also
support IPPC legislation, which is included in the legislation covered by the Water
Framework Directive. (WFD 2000/60/EC) Reclaimed wastewater is a reliable,
valuable, drought proof source of water that must be taken into account in formulating
a sustainable water policy. There is a need to encourage planned and appropriate
wastewater reclamation and reuse in all countries and to establish safe reuse practice
European guidelines for most applications must be developed.
KEYWORDS
EU; reuse guidelines and good practice; water resources management; water
availability; wastewater reclamation; wastewater treatment; water reuse criteria;.
INTRODUCTION
Europeans have a long history on water reuse. There are examples of rainwater reuse
since the Minoan time, ca. 3,500-1,100 B.C. Wastewater reuse has been practiced
since the Ancient Greek and Roman civilizations (Angelakis and Spyridakis, 1996).
Land application of wastewater is an old and common practice, which has gone
through different development stages with time, knowledge of the processes,
treatment technology, and regulations evolution (Angelakis et al., 2005). Wastewater
has also been used by the Mediterranean civilizations, for example in the 14th and
15th centuries in the Milanese Marcites and in the Valencia huerta and the North
European ones, like in Great Britain, Germany, France, and Poland (Souli and
Trma, 1992).
Raw or partially treated, wastewater has been used for agriculture in many locations
all over the world not without causing serious public health consequences and adverse
environmental impacts, but improving the yield of several crops. This has been
generating the existence of endemic, and quite epidemic diseases. Slow rate (SR)
systems have a long history in the treatment and disposal of municipal wastewater.
These systems have been widely employed in the treatment/disposal of municipal
wastewater since 1850 (Folsom, 1876). In the recent history, the expansion of
mechanical wastewater treatment plants had as consequence the application and
development of SR systems to decline. During the last two decades, there has been
renewed interest in the use of SR systems due to their significant advantages such as
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low construction, operation, and maintenance costs especially in small rural
communities.
Treated wastewater has been an important means of augmenting river flows in many
countries and the subsequent use of such water for all the applications constitutes
indirect reuse of wastewater. The developments in technology for wastewater and
drinking water treatment have ensured that the indirect recycling that has been
common place for many years is not only safe but can be demonstrated to be safe.
(UKWIR Reuse framework 2005) Regulatory control is provided by environmental
and drinking water legislation without including best available techniques or quality
guidelines for all the different reuse applications. Raw or partially treated wastewater
has been inappropriately applied in many locations all over the world and has caused
serious public health consequences with endemic and epidemic diseases as well as
damage to the environment.
In Europe, particularly in south region, the volume of wastewater is increasing.
Consequently, there is a major opportunity to use recycled water in the region. The
need for alternative sources of water was emphasized in the 2003 drought which
resulted in a 30% reduction in agricultural production. The 2003 drought was a
dramatic example of the measured 20% reduction in annual precipitation from 1900 to
2000 (EEA 2/2004). It is essential that the development of water reuse in agriculture
and other sectors be based on scientific evidences of its effects on environment and
public health (Kamizoulis et al., 2005). Although several studies have been conducted
on wastewater quality and for different purposes, at this time, there are no guidelines,
good practice or regulations of water reuse at an EU level other than the Urban
Wastewater Directive which states that treated wastewater should be reused
whenever appropriate . However, reclaimed water is of fundamental importance to
European environment and economy for:
(a). Stimulating of economic growth by providing an additional supply of water.
(b). Providing a reliable source for cooling and boiler feed for industry.
(c). Providing an appropriate and nutrient rich source for agricultural and landscape
irrigation.
(d). Reducing the demand on the limited fresh water resources, reducing the discharge
of pollutants to the environment, and energy consumption.
The beneficial use of treated municipal and industrial wastewater as well as the
increasing demands on finite water resources has prompted the emergence of
wastewater reclamation and reuse as an integral component of water resources
management. The inherent benefits associated with reclaiming treated wastewater for
supplemental applications instead of discharge or disposal include preservation of
higher quality water resources, environmental protection, and economic advantages.
A major catalyst for the evolution of wastewater reclamation and reuse has been the
need to provide alternative water resources to satisfy water requirements for
irrigation, industry, urban non-potable and potable water applications due to
unprecedented growth and development in many regions of the world. Water
shortages, particularly during periods of drought, have necessitated stricter control
measures on rates of water consumption and development of alternative water sources
(Asano, 1998).
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Advances in the effectiveness and reliability of wastewater treatment technologies
have improved the capacity to produce reclaimed wastewater that can serve as a
supplemental water source in addition to meeting water quality protection and
pollution abatement requirements. In developing countries, particularly those in arid
parts of the world, reliable low-cost technologies (both for water and wastewater
treatment and reuse) are needed for acquiring new water supplies and protecting
existing water sources from pollution. The implementation of wastewater recycling
and reuse promotes the preservation of limited water resources in conjunction with
water conservation and watershed protection programs (Asano, 1998).
In most developed areas of the world, wastewater reclamation and reuse is recognized
as a means to augment existing water resources against the spectre of continued
droughts and water supply shortages, as well as to provide water supply reliability to
operating systems. Characteristic examples are California, Singapore, Australia,
Japan, and China; where legislation and technologies and good practice on wastewater
recycling and reuse have improved markedly and are more developed than in Europe.
However, in some EUREAU countries there is limited technology and long term
experience has been gained (Angelakis et al., 2001).
This paper summarises the Eureau experience and investigation on wastewater
recycling and reuse practices of various member countries. In addition, water
resources status, national or regional legislation and guidelines on wastewater reuse
and a variety of approaches in regulating wastewater reuse are briefly presented.
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT IN EUREAU COUNTRIES
According to current European Population Committee the total population of the
Eureau countries is expected to remain stable until 2030 after which it will decline
due to the reduction in birth rates. (European population papers). The planned
enlargement of the EU to 28 member states will increase the population to around 470
million. Although the population is ageing and declining the following problems
need to be addressed: (a) long-term pollution is affecting an increasing number of
drinking water supplies (e.g. by nitrates, pesticide residues, drugs and by products) ;
(b) the protection of sensitive areas will require the reduction of discharges ; (c)
irrigation is likely to increase its water consumption, in particular in the
Mediterranean area (Anonymous, 1997a) ; and (d) global climate change is pushing
the European climate towards more extreme seasonal variations with more droughts
in the dry seasons and more floods in the wet season, calling for a more robust water
resources management (Angelakis and Bontoux, 2001). Climate change is also
predicted to increase migration resulting in demand management challenges in our
cities.
Another approach used to evaluate water scarcity is the exploitation rate of water
resources (the ratio between the volume of the annual withdrawals and available
renewable water resources). When the exploitation rate exceeds 20% of existing
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reserves, water management becomes a vital element in a countrys economy. In the
Mediterranean region, this is currently the case in Italy (22%) and Spain (28%), Malta
(60%) and Cyprus (66%) (Mediterranean region exploitation rate ranges from 28
to145%). In Western Europe (Fig. 1), it is the case in Belgium (44%), the Netherlands
(7%), Germany (27%) and France (16%) (Western Europe range 21 to 108%). The
situation is most critical in some countries wishing to join the EU, such as the Rep. of
Moldova, Hungary, Romania, Ukraine and Rep. of Poland (25 to 296%).
Moreover, several regions and islands in Europe, especially in Bulgaria, Greece,
France, Portugal and the south east of England, have already reached an exploitation
rate of almost 100% of their local water resources. These data suggest that to meet
future needs, many European countries will have to manage water resources far more
efficiently than they do now. Over abstraction of groundwater is common place
resulting in sea water intrusion and in some regions soil salinization due to irrigation
with brackish water
In view of the current outlook for the use of water resources over the whole Eureau
area, existing policies need to be re-oriented towards an integrated water cycle
management strategy to minimising health and environmental risks. The European
Water Framework Directive (WFD) lays the foundation for such an approach,
including river basin based management and water quality objectives. This should
translate in a better control of polluting discharges over the long-term. In all EU
countries, hydrological plans are being drawn up. These plans can be effective tools
for action but the existing ones: (a) do not include integrated water resources schemes,
(b) are dominated by the significance of short-term requirements, and (c) are still
mostly turned more towards increasing water availability than towards better
management of the water demands in spite of recent efforts to address these new
challenges. For comparison grounds, it should be noted that the river basin
management strategy adopted in Australia has resulted in a reduction in the water
resource available as more water is kept in the ground and surface systems to protect
quality and the environment.
The European WFD and its daughter directives are already reducing the availability of
water through the restriction of abstraction licences by 15 to 20% in some regions to
protect the ecology. In addition diffused pollution is dramatically reducing
groundwater availability in some areas. Europe needs water reuse guidelines and
agreed good practice to safely and economically benefit from sustainable reuse.
Perhaps Europe should consider the benefits that the mediteranean climate regions of
Australia have gained by introducing a directive to reuse 20% of its wastewater by
2012 (Government of Western Australia, 2003).
The reuse of reclaimed treated wastewater should and must become recognized as an
important part of integrated water cycle management strategy to recharge
conventional water resources for indirect potable applications, to directly substitute
potable applications for industry and irrigation and to reduce the environmental
impact of discharges. Reuse is already a key part of water management in Europe but
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a number of technical and regulatory issues remain to be addressed to make sure it has
no undesirable impact on the environment or on public health. In addition, safe reuse
practices require good practice, water quality guidelines and appropriate training.
ADDRESSING WATER SHORTAGES
Almost all Mediterranean Eureau members regularly experience severe water supply
and demand imbalances, particularly in the summer months. This is due to the
simultaneous occurrence of low precipitation, high evaporation and increased
demands for irrigation and tourism. However, water shortages have also affected
regions less used to such events, where periods of drought are becoming more
frequent and long lasting as a result of global climate change, as indicated before.
Numerous regions in France, Italy, Belgium, and the UK have suffered the negative
impact of successive droughts over the last ten years (Angelakis and Bontoux, 2001).
Same situation should be considered for Spain and Greece. Renewable water resource
exploitation in European countries and water stress index for several countries are
shown in Figures 1 and 2, respectively.
Several strategies have been developed in order to face water shortages. One is the
construction of required infrastructure for transferring water from rich watersheds to
deficient areas. Such projects require very expensive investments and a large civil
engineering works, potentially creating a large environmental impact due to energy
demands and carbon impact. Additionally, as most of the easy projects have already
been built (e.g. canal de Provence in France, trasvase Tajo-Segura in Spain), such an
approach becomes more and more difficult as the areas likely to benefit from the
water transfer become ever more remote. One must also note that this practice also
raise economic, institutional, socio-cultural and political issues, as shown by the
discussions surrounding the recently failed water transfer project between the Rhne
river in France and Catalonia in Spain. Reuse has been demonstrated as a safe and
lower cost solution to water importation in California (approximately half the energy
costs) as long as the regulation and good practice is provided to ensure safety.
Other solutions can be implemented such as water savings (e.g. reducing the leakage
from supply networks, using more efficient irrigation techniques such as drip
irrigation and small flush toilet systems), tapping other resources (e.g. desalinating
seawater or brackish water), and diversification of wastewater reuse practices
(Lazarova et al., 2000). Reducing demand through pricing (e.g. applying the demand
elasticity) is also a possible option, but it raises many political difficulties, in
particular in countries where water is either free or paid through a flat fee.
Nevertheless, due to the comparatively low prices of water, such economic tool does
not generate appreciable saving.
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Figure1. Renewable water resource exploitation in European countries (Angelakis et al.,
2003)
Treated wastewater reuse can have many important benefits. The most obvious is the
provision of an additional dependable water resource. The second is the reduction of
environmental impacts by reducing or eliminating wastewater disposal, which results
in the preservation of water quality downstream. Therefore, in the framework of an
integrated water management strategy at a catchments scale, the benefits of
wastewater reuse should always been assessed taking into account that water
recycling and reuse contributes to both enhancing a region's water resource and
minimizing wastewater outflow. In addition, using recycled wastewater for irrigation
can reduce the need for fertilizer thanks to the nutrients it contains. This may even
remove the requirement for tertiary wastewater treatment in sensitive areas that is
stipulated by the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive.
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Figure 2. Water stress index (abstraction/availability ratio)
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The use of recycled wastewater for irrigation has been progressively adopted by
virtually all Mediterranean countries (Marecos do Monte et al., 1996). Israel was
pioneer in this field, soon followed by Tunisia, Morocco, Cyprus, and Jordan. More
recently, European Mediterranean countries started considering wastewater reuse for
irrigation. Although irrigation with wastewater is in itself an effective purification (a
sort of low-rate land treatment), appropriate treatment must be performed for the
protection of public health, the prevention of nuisances during storage and the
prevention of damage to the crops and soils (Asano and Levine, 1996). So far, in only
a few countries worldwide (Unites States, Australia, Israel, Japan and China),
wastewater recycling and reuse is well enough established to have led to the drawing
of specific regulations or guidelines. In a number of other countries (Cyprus, Spain,
and France,) regulations concerning the use of recycled wastewater for irrigation are
under discussion, preparation and/or revision. Italy has adopted a new regulation in
2003. Notice that regulations refer to actual rules that have been enacted and are
enforceable by governmental agencies. Guidelines, on the other hand, are not
enforceable but can be used in the development of a reuse program.
BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WASTEWATER RECYCLING AND REUSE IN
EUREAU COUNTRIES
Traditionally, most Eureau countries are characterized with abundant water resources;
thus, up to now and the recognised impact of climate change we have not invested
heavily in planned wastewater recycling and reuse. However indirect potable reuse is
common practice in the river basins where cities have developed over the centuries
and the treated waste water from the conurbations in the upper catchment are mixed
with the surface drainage become the freshwater supply in the lower catchments.
However, this general situation hides very diverse realities. In Southern Europe,
planned wastewater reuse is still a limited, but rapidly growing source of irrigation
water. In Northern Europe, it is barely practiced, but can be developed for sanitation
or environmental protection purposes in response to increasingly stringent
environmental regulations, even in the absence of any water shortage (see the case of
Sweden for example). It should be noticed that in Eureau countries, wastewater reuse
has rarely been considered as an integral component of sanitation and overall water
resources management (Anonymous, 1997b) although many river basins rely on
appropriately treated wastewater to maintain the availability of freshwater for the
ecology and as a water source for treatment to produce potable water. In this section
we review the current practices and the potential of wastewater recycling and reuse in
various Eureau countries under three headings depending on the status of wastewater
reuse.
Countries with Regulations and/or Guidelines Concerning Wastewater Reuse
Cyprus. In Cyprus the wastewater generated by the main cities, about 25 Mm
3
/yr, is
planned to be collected and used for irrigation after tertiary treatment. Because of the
high transportation cost, it is anticipated that most of the recycled water, about 55 to
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60%, will be used for amenity purposes used as hotel gardens, parks, golf courses, etc.
A net of about 10 Mm
3
is conservatively estimated to be available for agricultural
irrigation. The cost of recycled water is low, about 0.07/m
3
. This will reportedly
allow irrigated agriculture to be expanded by 8-10% while conserving an equivalent
amount of water for other sectors (Papadopoulos, 1995).
The criteria related to the use of treated wastewater for irrigation purposes in Cyprus
are presented in Table 1. These criteria have been established in June 2005 (Decree no
296/03.06.05). They are stricter than the WHO guidelines and take the specific
conditions of Cyprus into account. These criteria are followed by a code of practice to
ensure the best possible application of the water for irrigation (Kypris, 1989).
However, these criteria are someway apart from California regulations philosophy.
France. France has irrigated crops with wastewater for years (close to a century), in
particular around Paris because, until 1940, it was the only method of treating and
disposing of the wastewater of the Greater Paris conurbation. This practice is still
going on in the Achres region, where some of the wastewater is used after an
advanced primary treatment. Interest in wastewater reuse rose again in the early 1990s
for two main reasons: (a) local water deficits hindering the development of profitable
agricultural activity, particularly in Atlantic and Mediterranean islands, and (b) the
necessity to protect bathing waters, shellfish breeding areas and, also, rivers
threatened by eutrophication. Even though France has an ample availability of
freshwater with an average rainfall of 600mm/yr thirty municipal wastewater reuse
projects have been implemented. These include 15 projects for agricultural irrigation,
9 projects for irrigation of golf and 6 projects for irrigation of urban areas. (Durham et
al., 2005).
The projects have been implemented to:
overcome water stress from lack of rainfall and maintain the local agriculture
industry
overcome water stress from the increased population due to tourism
protect high quality surface water from recharge with treated wastewater
reduce the need to over abstract groundwater that has resulted in saline
intrusion
improve the attractiveness of the area through irrigation of urban landscapes
and sport facilities
increase the availability of fresh water for potable production by irrigating golf
courses (where the water demand for one golf course is equivalent to a
population of 36,000
reduce surface water eutrophication, protect bathing water quality and shell fish
help the community recognize that a responsible and sustainable approach to
water management is being taken by their local government authority
Table1. Provisional quality criteria for irrigation with reclaimed wastewater in Cyprus.
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Irrigation of:
BOD
5
(mg/L)
SS
(mg/L
)
Fecal coliforms
(MPN/100mL)
Intestinal
nematodes
(No/L)
Treatment required
All crops
c
A) 10
a
10
a
5
a
15
b
Nil
Secondary, tertiary, and disinfection
Amenity areas of
unlimited public access -
Vegetables eaten cooked
A)
10
a
15
b
10
a
15
b
50
a
100
b
Nil
Secondary, tertiary and disinfection
A)
20
a
30
b
30
a
45
b
200
a
1000
b
Nil Crops for human
consumption - Amenity
areas of limited public
access
B)
- -
200
a
1000
b
Nil
Secondary, storage >1 week and
disinfection
or tertiary and disinfection. Stabilization
maturation ponds total retention time
>30 d or secondary and storage >30 d
A)
20
a
30
b
30
a
45
b
1000
a
5000
b
Nil Fodder crops
B)
- - 1000
a
Nil
Secondary and storage >1 week or
tertiary and disinfection. Stabilization
maturation ponds total retention time
>30 d or secondary and storage >30 d or
secondary and storage > 30 d
A)
50
a
70
b
-
-
3000
a
10000
b
-
-
Industrial crops
B)
- -
3000
a
10000
b
-
-
Secondary and disinfection.
Stabilization maturation ponds with total
retention time >30 d or secondary and
storage >30 d
a
These values must not be exceeded in 80% of samples per month.
b
Maximum value allowed.
c
Irrigation of leaved vegetables, bulbs, and corns eaten uncooked is not allowed.
Note:
The irrigation of vegetables is not allowed.
The irrigation of ornamental plants for trade purposes is not allowed.
No substances accumulating in the edible parts of crops and proved to be toxic to humans or animals are allowed in the effluent.
Because of the interest for wastewater reuse, the Health Authorities issued in 1991 the
Health guidelines for reuse, after treatment, of wastewater for crop and green spaces
irrigation (CSHPF, 1991). These guidelines essentially follow the WHO guidelines,
but also add restrictions for irrigation techniques and set back distances between
irrigation sites and residential areas and roadways. Furthermore, each new wastewater
reuse project must be authorized by the representatives of the Ministry of Health and
monitored on a permanent basis (Bontoux and Courtois, 1996). In February 1996, the
Association of Water Supply and Sewerage Practitioners (AGHTM) published
technical recommendations about the wastewater treatments necessary to ensure
compliance with the French guidelines. A review of these guidelines is being
considered (Angelakis et al., 2003).
Only 30 projects have in fact been carried out up to now, mainly because of the
relative abundance of water resource. The projects implemented cover more than 3000
ha of land, and quite a wide variety of applications: market gardening crops, orchard
fruits, cereals, tree plantations and forests, grasslands, gardens and golf courses (Faby
et al, 1999). The Clermont-Ferrand recycling scheme for irrigation of over 700 ha of
maize with a 40 km distribution system is today considered to be one of the largest
projects in Europe. The recent development of new treatment processes, such as
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membrane bioreactors (MBR) (ultrafiltration, microfiltration), produce a very high
quality purified water, disinfected and with no suspended solids. This is changing the
approach to municipal and industrial applications and may and open the door to
recycling for domestic purposes (cleaning, toilet flushing, etc.). The reuse of industrial
wastewater after purification to supply cooling water, wash water or even process
water after sophisticated complementary treatment is widely developed in France.
There are more than 10 MBR projects in industrial wastewater treatment in France
with examples in the automotive, textile, paper, food industries of industrial
wastewater. In some of these applications for the paper and food industry the treated
water is reused. The applications also include rainwater catchment and reuse at a large
automotive plant.
The reuse of industrial wastewater after purification with conventional technology to
supply cooling water, wash water or even process water after sophisticated
complementary treatment is widely developed in France. Financial incentives have
been available from the Agences de Basin (Catchment Authorities) for reuse
projects in industry that demonstrate an environmental benefit.
Italy. A first survey of Italian treatment plants estimated the total treated wastewater
flow at 2,400 Mm3/yr of usable water. This gives an estimate of the potential resource
available for reuse. In view of the regulatory obligation to achieve a high level of
treatment, the medium to large-sized plants (>100,000 inh. served), accounting for
approximately 60% of urban wastewater flow can provide re-usable wastewaters with
a favourable cost/benefit ratio. The use of untreated wastewater has been practiced in
Italy at least since the beginning of this century, especially on the outskirts of small
towns and near Milan. Among the oldest cases of irrigation with wastewater is the
Marcite where water from the Vettabia river, which receives most of the industrial
and urban untreated wastewater, is used. Nowadays, treated wastewater is used
mainly for agricultural irrigation covering over 4,000 ha. However, the controlled
reuse of municipal wastewater in agriculture is not yet developed in most Italian
regions because of a stringent normative which ignores the findings of recent research
work and experiences of uncontrolled reuse so common in Southern Italy. One of the
largest projects was implemented in Emilia Romagna where over 450,000 m3/yr of
treated wastewater are used for irrigation of more than 250 ha. The real costs for the
distribution of recycled wastewater (power, labour, network maintenance) are covered
by the users. New wastewater reuse systems have been recently completed in Sicily
and Sardinia for agricultural irrigation.
The use of wastewater for irrigation in Italy was regulated, since 1977 and till 2003,
in the frame of the 1976 Water Protection Act (Annex 5, CITAI, 1977), being
considered an extensive treatment process. The approach was in some respects
1
- from
an hygienic point of view - quite stringent, especially if we consider that, in many
cases, Italian surface waters generally used for irrigation display a consistently lower
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microbiological quality (often in the 10
4
10
5
range for TC and 10
2
10
3
for FC) and
that waters standards for recreational uses allow 2,000 MPN/100 mL (TC) and 100
MPN/100 mL (FC). No standards were set for toxic or bio-accumulative substances
and a specific evaluation of the volume of wastewater which can be yearly applied,
depending on soil and crops, was required. Other guidelines dictated by the previous
Italian legislation required warnings of possible hygienic dangers around the irrigated
area (access had to be kept under control) and it had to be surrounded by a buffer strip
of at least 80 m (without buildings or roads), regardless of the quality of the
wastewater and of the irrigation system. Some other Regional Governments (e.g.:
Puglia and Sicilia), using the powers given by the 1976 Water Protection Act,
prepared and issued regional standards.
Finally, following the frame of Law-decree n. 152, a new legislative set of rules was
promulgated on June 12
th
, 2003 (Ministry Decree, D.M. no 185/03). The new
standards are summarised and compared with the previous ones; as it can be easily
recognised, a quite different approach was used. In fact, the new standards seem to
have, at least partially, accepted previous independent proposals (see for instance,
Nurizzo and Mezzanotte, 1994): this is the case of electric conductivity and Boron
(Table 2). In fact Boron in treated effluents (not routinely checked) can reach pretty
high concentrations in some districts: a survey carried out on the effluents of 10
biological plants (Mezzanotte et al., 2003) showed an average concentration of 0.76
mg B/L (on an yearly basis)
2
. Some other important parameters like nematode eggs,
viruses, and protozoa are, on the contrary, not taken into consideration.
The proposed standards seem to follow a quite restrictive approach, especially for
some chemical compounds: in many cases the quality standards for reclaimed
wastewater are the same of drinking water (see Table 2, data in bold). This approach
will surely lead to some difficulties in promoting wastewater reuse, when the
compliance with some very strict standards will ask for advanced treatments, with all
the related consequences on the economics of the reclamation. Another negative
aspect is the overabundance of parameters taken into account and their related
monitoring protocols. In fact the number of parameters to be monitored exceeds 50
items and the sampling frequency can be very high, depending on the regional
provisions.
It must be also considered that no distinction
3
is established among various crops to be
irrigated with reclaimed wastewater (restricted, unrestricted irrigation) and no
attention is paid to the influence of different irrigation options (i.e.: subsurface drip
irrigation, versus spray irrigation) in reducing sanitary risks.
Table 2 - Reclaimed wastewater to be used for irrigation: the new national standards
(D.M. 185/03, 2003), compared with the previous ones
4
(CITAI, 1977).
4
If the standard is the same of that for drinking water, its value is in bold; darkened #
cells indicate parameters not taken into account by drinking water standards.
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# PARAMETERS
NEW
STANDARDS
OLD
STANDARDS
NOTES
1 pH 6.0 9.5 -
2 SAR 10.0 < 15.0
3 Coarse solids absent -
4 TSS [mg/L] 10.0 * *Low enough to avoid soil-
clogging
5 BOD
5
[mg/L] 20.0 -
6 COD [mg/L] 100.0 -
7 Phosphorus [mg P/L] (total) 2.0 -
8 Total Nitrogen [mg N/L] 15.0 -
9 Ammonia [mg NH
4
/L] 2.0 -
10 EC
W
[S/cm] 3,000 -
11 Aluminium [mg Al/L] 1.0 -
12 Arsenic [mg As/L] 0.02 -
13 Barium [mg Ba/L] 10.0 -
14 Boron [mg B/L] 1.0 -
15 Cadmium [mg Cd/L] 0.005 -
16 Cobalt [mg Co/L] 0.05 -
17 Chromium [mg Cr/L] (total) 0.1 -
18 Chromium hexavalent [mg
Cr
VI
/L)
0.005 -
19 Iron [mg Fe/L] 2.0 -
20 Manganese [mg Mn/L] 0.2 -
21 Mercury [mg Hg/L] 0.001 -
22 Nickel [mg Ni/L] 0.2 -
23 Lead [mg Pb/L] 0.1 -
24 Copper [mg Cu/L] 1.0 -
25 Selenium [mg Se/L] 0.01 -
26 Tin [mg Sn/L] 3.0 -
27 Thallium [mg Tl/L] 0.001 -
28 Vanadium [mg V/L] 0.1 -
29 Zinc [mg Zn/L] 0.5 -
30 Cyanides[mg CN/L] (total) 0.05 -
31 Sulphides [mg H
2
S/L] 0.5 -
32 Sulphites [mg SO
3
/L] 0.5 -
33 Sulphates [mg SO
4
/L] 500 -
34 Chlorine residual [mg/L] 0.2 -
35 Chlorides [mg Cl/L] 250 -
36 Fluorides [mg F/L] 1.5 -
37 Animal/vegetal oils & fats
[mg/L]
10.0 -
38 Mineral oils [mg/L] 0.05 -
39 Phenols [mg/L] (total) 0,1 -
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40 Pentachlorophenol [mg/L] 0.003 -
41 Aldehydes [mg/L] (total) 0.5 -
42 Tetra/tricloro-ethylene
[mg/L]
0.01 -
43 Chlorinated solvents [mg/L]
(total)
0.04 -
44 TTHM [mg/L] 0.03 -
45 Aromatic solvents [mg/L]
(total)
0.001 -
46 Benzene [mg/L] 0.01 -
47 Benzo(a)pyrene [mg/L] 0.00001 -
48 Org. nitr. solvents [mg/L]
(total)
0.01 -
49 Surfactants [mg/L] (total) 0.5 -
50 Chlorinated biocides [mg/L] 0.0001 - 0.03 g/L for Aldrin, Dieldrin,
Heptachlor epoxide
Table 6 follows
51 Phosphorated pesticides
[mg/L]
0.00001^ - ^ for any single item
52 Other pesticides [mg/L]
(total)
0.05 -
53 E. Coli [UFC /100 mL]
(80% of samples)
(Constructed wetlands)
(Stabilisation ponds)
10*
50
100
- * 100 CFU/100 mL will be
allowed as a maximum for a
single isolated sample and for
the first three years of
application of the new Act.
54
Salmonellae [UFC /100 mL] absent -
- Helminths eggs [n/L]
(viable)
- -
-
FC [UFC /100 mL]
- -
-
TC [MPN/100 mL] - 2
(a)
20
a)
unrestricted irrigation.
In synthesis: in a set of 54 parameters - which is probably too large to assure an
effective enforcement and monitoring - 20% of them ask for the same quality of
drinking water; 37% of them are not even considered for drinking water (some of
them are anyway justified), and the indication of some other parameters (for instance
biocides and pesticides) is difficult to be explained in an agricultural environment.
Under these conditions, the total cost (construction, operation and maintenance)
requested for reclamation, in addition to the costs for the distribution of reclaimed
water and the monitoring of the whole reuse system, will be difficult to attain and will
be probably tolerable only for large WWTPs, thus reducing the benefit of reclaiming
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water and hampering the development of wastewater reuse practices for the smaller
ones; moreover, several successful reuse activities operating since a few years in
small communities of Southern Italy inland areas, will certainly be obliged to face
problems difficult to cope with.
Spain. The changes in March 2004 of the party in the Government, lead to the
abandonment of the National Hydrological Plan commissioned and approved by the
Partido Popular. Instead of the Plan, the called Programa AGUA (WATER Program)
define alternative ways to the actuations implied in the old Plan, having been the most
controversial with a huge infrastructure for transportation of Ebro river water 600 km
to the South. Instead, the new Program relies mainly on seawater desalination.
Although in its initial phases, it seems that the Plan will further support wastewater
reclamation and reuse.
In any case, the reuse of treated wastewater is already a reality in several Spanish
regions for four main applications: golf course irrigation, agricultural irrigation,
groundwater recharge (in particular to stop saltwater intrusion in coastal aquifers) and
river flow augmentation. There are more than 126 reuse projects that have been
implemented. 86% for agriculture, 12% for municipal and golf and 2% for industry
and aquifer recharge.(Cajigas) Commercial interest exists and some private water
companies invest in Research and Development activities, in collaboration with the
Universities (e.g. AGBAR and Canal de Isabel II). National guidelines are being
developed and at least three autonomous regions (Andaluca, Catalonia and Balearic
Islands) have either legal prescriptions or recommendations concerning wastewater
recycling and reuse. Multiple projects have been implemented treating brackish
wastewater for irrigation and seawater desalination for irrigation in water short
regions.
There is an initiative backed by the Ministry of the Environment, the CEDEX, AEAS
(the EUREAU Spanish branch), ACA (Catalonia Water Agency), the Greater
Barcelona Entity, several foundations (AGBAR, Canal de Isabel II and EMASESA)
and the University of Barcelona to develop Good Reuse Practices and a Wastewater
Reclamation and Reuse Risk Analysis, and since the end of 2004, there is an ad hoc
Committee analyzing the old reuse draft never issued.
Countries Contemplating Regulations and/or Guidelines Concerning Wastewater
Reuse
Belgium. As a result of its dense population, several indicators show that Belgium
can be considered as one of the most water-stressed EUREAU Countries. Amongst
others, the amount of renewable water is relatively low (817m/inh. yr). This is
indirectly translated in a poor groundwater and surface water quality.
Despite the fact that the amount of wastewater reuse so far remains limited (less than
2% of the total treated wastewater), the reuse of treated wastewater is becoming an
essential and reliable option especially in industry, such as power plants, food
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processing, and other industries with high rates of water utilization and in areas of
dropping water tables of high summer water demand such as the coastal regions
during the tourist season. Industrial wastewater reuse is being fostered by the Flemish
Government. In general, the Government wants to restrict groundwater abstraction to
these applications requiring the superior groundwater quality, and hence to promote
wastewater reuse by increasing the groundwater extraction fees.
Eight municipal wastewater reuse projects are now operational (Table 3). Many other
projects are in a more or less advanced planning phase. In Wulpen WWTP, 2.5
million m/yr of urban wastewater is treated by microfiltration (MF) and reverse
osmosis (RO), stored for 1-2 months in the aquifer, and used for water supply
augmentation. Specific infiltration consents have been introduced for this project.
A similar project has been under investigation in Heist, where different options to
increase the potable water supply have been considered, such as MF/RO filtration of
surface water. The reuse of 10,000 m/d WWTP wastewater after MBR and RO
treatment has been rejected because of the fact that a natural treatment step through
e.g. infiltration was technically impossible. A natural treatment step was considered
imperative for safety reasons and social acceptance, although the quality obtained
through MBR/RO was sufficient to be considered for direct potable reuse.
In another case, in Waregem, a 3.0 M m/yr direct WWTP reuse project for textile
industry has been investigated. The technological feasibility has been demonstrated,
but the ideal financing construction is still under discussion. There is a documented
case of established wastewater reuse in Belgium for agricultural purpose for the
irrigation of crops, mainly in summertime. Additionally, the University of Gembloux
had developed a system, called Epuvalisation, to reuse the wastewater wastewaters
in hydroculture (Xanthoulis and Guillaume, 1995).
Table 3 Municipal wastewater reuse projects in Belgium
Location End-use Size (m/yr) Start-up
Liedekerke
Nature enhancement/recreational
(bird watching) 11,979,000 1999
Wulpen Drinking water aquifer recharge 2.500.000 2001
Tienen Industrial cooling makeup water 2.000.000 2003
Brugge
Industrial cooling makeup
water/process water 640.000 2000
Aartselaar Industrial cooling makeup water 80.000 1997
Roeselare
Industrial cooling water/process
water 70.000 2004
Houthalen Industrial cooling makeup water 35.000 2003
St. Niklaas Industrial cooling makeup water N.A. N.A.
Gent/Eke Industrial washing 18.000 N.A.
Leuven Industrial washing 5.000 2004
Oostende Industrial washing N.A. N.A.
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Wulpen Polder irrigation N.A. N.A.
The Regional Government has started the discussion on the introduction of guidelines
and consents for wastewater reuse practice. Aquafin, the company responsible for the
waste water treatment infrastructure in Flanders, has submitted a first proposal for
consents, based on the Australian EPA guidelines.
Greece. In Greece, water demand has increased tremendously over the past 50 years.
Despite adequate precipitation, water imbalance is often experienced, due to temporal
and regional variations of the precipitation, the increased water demand during the
summer months and the difficulty of transporting water due to the mountainous
terrain. In addition, in many south-eastern and island areas there is severe pressure for
water demand, which is exacerbated by especially high demand of water for tourism
and irrigation. Therefore, the integration of treated wastewater into water resources
management master plans is a very important issue (Angelakis et al., 2003).
Today, more than 65% of the Greek population is connected to over 350 centralised
WWTP with a total capacity of over 1.45 Mm
3
/d (Tsagarakis et al., 2001). An
analysis of data concerning the water balance of the areas of the treatment plants
demonstrated that more than 83% of the treated effluents are produced in regions with
a deficient water balance (Tchobanoglous and Angelakis, 1996). Therefore, treated
wastewater reuse in these areas would satisfy an existing water demand. Several
research and pilot projects dealing with wastewater reclamation and reuse are
currently under way in Greece (Angelakis et al., 1999). In addition, few small projects
on wastewater reclamation and reuse are in practice, such as in Archanes, Chalkida,
Hersonissos, and Thessaloniki. Few other projects are under planning, such as Iraklio,
Agios Nikolaos and several Aegean cities. Also, several indirect reuse projects are in
use in the central Greece ( Larissa, Trikala, Karditsa, Lamia, and Tripolis). However,
no guidelines or criteria for wastewater reclamation and reuse have been yet adopted
beyond those for discharge (No E1b/221/65 Health Arrangement Action). A
preliminary study on the necessity for establishment of criteria in Greece has been
implemented (Angelakis et al., 2000). Proposed criteria are aimed to increase
protection of human health and environment (Tsagarakis et al., 2003).
Malta. As it has been referred, the water deficit in Malta is acute. Since agriculture is
the main source of income, wastewater reuse for irrigation has been contemplated as
early as 1884 in order to preserve freshwater for domestic use.
Since 1983, the treated wastewater from the Sant Antnin sewage treatment plant has
been used for irrigation. The current output of 10,800 m
3
/d is expected to be increased
to 17,000 m
3
/d after expansion of the plant. The plant uses an activated sludge process
followed by rapid sand filters (9 m
3
/m