SAFE USE OF WASTEWATER

IN AGRICULTURE:
GOOD PRACTICE EXAMPLES
Hiroshan Hettiarachchi
Reza Ardakanian, Editors
SAFE USE OF WASTEWATER IN
AGRICULTURE:
GOOD PRACTICE EXAMPLES

Hiroshan Hettiarachchi
Reza Ardakanian, Editors
 PREFACE

Population growth, rapid urbanisation, more water intense consumption

patterns and climate change are intensifying the pressure on freshwater
resources. The increasing scarcity of water, combined with other factors
such as energy and fertilizers, is driving millions of farmers and other
entrepreneurs to make use of wastewater. Wastewater reuse is an
excellent example that naturally explains the importance of integrated
management of water, soil and waste, which we define as the Nexus
While the information in this book are generally believed to be true and accurate at the
approach. The process begins in the waste sector, but the selection of
date of publication, the editors and the publisher cannot accept any legal responsibility for
the correct management model can make it relevant and important to
any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, expressed or
the water and soil as well. Over 20 million hectares of land are currently
implied, with respect to the material contained herein.
known to be irrigated with wastewater. This is interesting, but the
The opinions expressed in this book are those of the Case Authors. Their inclusion in this
alarming fact is that a greater percentage of this practice is not based
book does not imply endorsement by the United Nations University.
on any scientific criterion that ensures the “safe use” of wastewater. In
order to address the technical, institutional, and policy challenges of
safe water reuse, developing countries and countries in transition need
clear institutional arrangements and more skilled human resources,
United Nations University Institute for Integrated
with a sound understanding of the opportunities and potential risks of
Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources
wastewater use.
(UNU-FLORES)
In 2011 seven UN-Water members, partners and programmes led by
the UN-Water Decade Programme on Capacity Development (UNW-
Ammonstrasse 74, 01067 Dresden, Germany
DPC) joined efforts to address the capacity needs of countries with
Tel.: + 49-351 8921 9370
regards to the Safe Use of Wastewater in Agriculture (SUWA). The Food
Fax: + 49-351 8921 9389
and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World
e-mail: [email protected]
Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Environment Program
(UNEP), the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment
© 2016 UNU-FLORES
and Health (UNU-INWEH), the International Water Management Institute
Design and Layout: diamonds network GbR
(IWMI), and the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage
Editing: Serena Caucci, Arjun Avasthy, Rachel Shindelar, Atiqah Fairuz Salleh,
(ICID) were the other six partners. Between 2011 and 2013, these
Prime Productions
capacity development activities brought together 160 representatives
Translation: Prime Productions, Serena Caucci
from 73 UN member states from Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Further
Printer: Reprogress GmbH
support in these fields and the continuation of the SUWA initiative were
Photo credits: UNU-FLORES unless otherwise specified
strongly requested by the participants during these activities. With the
formal cessation of UNW-DPC in 2015, the coordination of the SUWA
ISBN 978-3-944863-30-6 (Web)
initiative was transferred to the United Nations University. Currently
ISBN 978-3-944863-31-3 (Print)
the United Nations University Institute for Integrated Management
of Material Fluxes and of Resources (UNU-FLORES) and UNU-INWEH
are responsible for coordinating SUWA activities together with other
partners.
The current phase of SUWA aims to support UN member states
in developing their national capacities in focus areas identified and
prioritised during 2011–2015, promoting the safer and more productive
use of wastewater. Developing countries and countries in transition
remain to be the focus. Sharing information between countries/regions
on “good practice examples of safe water reuse in agriculture” is one
of the important objectives identified during the early phase of the
SUWA initiative. In support of accomplishing this objective, UNU-
FLORES identified several interesting case studies from around the
world in 2015. Many of them were also orally presented and discussed
at the workshop organised by UNU-FLORES in Lima, Peru, in February
2016. This book includes 17 such case studies selected from Latin
America, Asia, and Africa. For ease of navigation through the content,
the material is presented in three sections; Section I: Technological
Advances; Section II: Health & Environmental Aspects; and Section III:
Policy & Implementation Issues. We sincerely hope the content of this
book will enhance knowledge sharing between the regions and also
help us learn from each other.
We wish to thank the authors of the case studies for their hard
work in sharing their knowledge as well as for the roles they played as
peer reviewers. Special thanks also go to our own colleagues at UNU-
FLORES, including Mr. Arjun Avasthy and Ms. Serena Caucci for their
tireless contribution. Last but not least, we would like to offer our sincere
gratitude to the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation
and Development (BMZ) for the generous financial support we received
to make this project a reality.

Hiroshan Hettiarachchi
Reza Ardakanian
CONTENT

SECTION I: TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES

CASE 1 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Managed Aquifer Recharge Systems for Natural and Sustainable
Wastewater Reclamation and Reuse Technology: Health Concerns
Associated with Human Viruses (USA)
Walter Q. Betancourt, Ian L. Pepper, and Charles P. Gerba

CASE 2 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Water Sensitive Urban Design for Metropolitan Lima, Peru –
“Wastewater Treatment Park: The Children’s Park” – Application of
Vertical Flow Constructed Wetlands in Public Open Space for Reuse of
Treated Wastewater (Peru)
Rosa Miglio, Alexandra Garcia, Eva Nemcova, and Rossana Poblet

CASE 3 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Wastewater Challenges and the Successful Implementation of
Constructed Wetlands in Egypt (Egypt)
T. T. El-Gamal and M. H. Housian

CASE 4 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Use of Reservoirs to Improve Irrigation Water Quality in Lima, Peru (Peru)
Julio Moscoso Cavallini

CASE 5 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Water Reuse for Landscape Irrigation and Toilet Flushing in Brasilia,
Brazil (Brazil)
M. R. Felizatto, F.C. Nery, A. S. Rodrigues, and C.M. Silva
SECTION II: HEALTH & ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS SECTION III: POLICY & IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES

CASE 6 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 CASE 11 .................................................................................................... 197

Good Irrigation Practices in the Wastewater Irrigated Area of Government Supported Farmers Utilising Wastewater in Irrigation: The
Ouardanine, Tunisia (Tunisia) Case of the South African Government in Lebowakgomo in the Limpopo
Olfa Mahjoub, Mohamed Mekada, and Najet Gharbi Province Supporting Farmers Producing Vegetables (South Africa)
T. Gomo
CASE 7 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
CASE 12 .................................................................................................... 209
Effects of More Than 100 Years of Irrigation with Mexico City’s
Wastewater in the Mezquital Valley (Mexico) Challenges in Implementing Standards for Reuse of Treated
Christina Siebe, María Chapela-Lara, Mario Cayetano-Salazar, Wastewater in Irrigation: The Case of Bolivia (Bolivia)
Blanca Prado, and Jan Siemens Juan Carlos Rocha Cuadros

CASE 8 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 CASE 13 .................................................................................................... 223

Eco-Friendly Wastewater Treatment for Reuse in Agriculture (India) Community-Based Wastewater Management System in Peri-Urban
Ravinder Kaur Areas of Kathmandu Valley, Nepal (Nepal)
Uttam Raj Timilsina
CASE 9 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
CASE 14 .................................................................................................... 251
Productivity of Sugarcane Irrigated with Effluent from the Cañaveralejo
Wastewater Treatment Plant in Cali, Colombia (Colombia) Wastewater Reuse in Mendoza Province, Argentina (Argentina)
C. A Madera-Parra, A. Echeverri, and N. Urrutia Carlos Horacio Foresi

CASE 10 .................................................................................................... 171 CASE 15 .................................................................................................... 267

Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Cereal and Legume Crops through Varamin Project: A Wastewater Reuse Success Story from Iran (Iran)
Sewage Water Irrigation and Phosphate Fertilisers (Pakistan) Mohammad Javad Monem
G. Murtaza, M. Bilal Shakoor, and Nabeel Khan Niazi
CASE 16 .................................................................................................... 279
Council for Certification of Irrigation with Treated Water in Mexico (Mexico)
Carlos Antonio Paillés Bouchez

CASE 17 .................................................................................................... 301

The Reuse of Treated Water for Agricultural Irrigation in Bolivia (Bolivia)
Luis Grover Marka Saravia
 SECTION I:
TECHNOLOGICAL
ADVANCES
CASE 1
Managed Aquifer Recharge Systems for Natural
and Sustainable Wastewater Reclamation and
Reuse Technology: Health Concerns Associated
with Human Viruses (USA)

Walter Q. Betancourt, Ian L. Pepper, and Charles P. Gerba1

Abstract

Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) systems such as riverbank filtration

and soil-aquifer treatment all involve the use of natural subsurface
systems to improve the quality of recharged water (i.e., surface water,
storm water, reclaimed water) before reuse (e.g. planned potable reuse).
During MAR, water is either infiltrated via basins, subsurface injected
or abstracted from wells adjacent to rivers. MAR systems represent an
attractive option for augmenting and improving groundwater quality
as well as for environmental management purposes. However, reuse
systems designed for applications that involve human contact should
include redundant barriers for pathogens that cause waterborne
diseases. This case covers key aspects of a case study on virus removal
at three full-scale MAR systems located in different regions of the
United States (Arizona, Colorado, and California). MAR projects may
be economically viable for developing countries; however, sustainable
management is relevant to successfully maintain the attributes necessary
for potable and non-potable water reuse.
Keywords: management, aquifer, recharge, removal, viruses

1
Walter Q. Betancourt  • Ian L. Pepper • Charles P. Gerba. Water & Energy
Sustainable Technology (WEST) Center, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA.
e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

3
1. Introduction reuse technology that can renovate wastewater effluents to drinking
water levels, and thus represents an important component for indirect
Increased water demand and supply in the world coupled with potable reuse supply (Asano and Cotruvo 2004; Dillon et al. 2009;
contamination of surface and ground water, uneven distribution and Missimer et al. 2011; Bekele et al. 2011). During MAR, the water is
pressure on limited available water resources plus frequent droughts either infiltrated via basins, subsurface injected or abstracted from
caused by extreme global weather patterns, has placed additional wells adjacent to rivers.
demand on the promotion for innovative sources of water supply The quality of the source water (e.g. storm water, impacted surface
and local conservation. In this context, high quality effluents derived water or natural streams, properly treated municipal or industrial
from wastewater treatment and reclamation technologies are being wastewater) can improve during infiltration and subsurface soil passage
increasingly used in many countries (e.g. United States, Australia, (Sharma and Amy 2011). Microbial pathogens, nutrients and many
Germany, Saudi Arabia, The Netherlands) for indirect potable (i.e. of the chemical contaminants are either removed or biotransformed
replenishment of groundwater resources) and non-potable (i.e., (Weiss et al. 2005; Pang, 2009; Hoppe-Jones et al. 2010). In regions
agricultural and landscape irrigation) reuse purposes (Clinton 2007; where conventional freshwater resources are insufficient to meet
Dillon et al. 2009; Alidina et al. 2015). growing water demands, reclaimed water represents an alternate
Planned indirect potable use is a careful and deliberate process to water supply (Alidina et al. 2015). MAR systems represent an attractive
augment water resources while maintaining health and environmental option for augmenting and improving groundwater quality as well
safeguards. Most planned indirect potable reuse is linked to as for environmental management purposes. These systems require
groundwater recharge. However, most indirect potable reuse in minimal energy and chemical inputs for attenuation or removal
practice, whether it is planned or unplanned, occurs through blending of microbial and chemical compounds and do not create a waste
with surface water (Asano 2007). Groundwater recharge with reclaimed stream, in contrast to processes like membrane treatment (Dillon
water is an approach to water reuse that results in the augmentation 2005; Sudhakaran et al. 2013). It has been previously recognised
of groundwater for various beneficial uses, including municipal water that with training and demonstration projects MAR has potential to
supply, agricultural irrigation, and industrial water supply. Groundwater be a major contributor to the United Nations (UN) Millennium Goal
recharge has been used to (i) reduce, stop, or even reverse declines for Water Supply especially for village supplies in semi-arid and arid
of groundwater levels, (ii) protect underground freshwater in coastal areas (Dillon 2005).
aquifers against saltwater and brackish water intrusion; and (iii) store Unresolved health concerns associated with drinking water drawn
surface water, including storm water or other surplus water and from polluted water sources certainly exist for wastewater reuse for
reclaimed water for future use; (iv) to negate potential problems of potable purposes; however, a properly planned and managed water
land subsidence (Asano, 2007). In the United States, groundwater reuse project can produce higher quality finished water than unplanned
recharge with reclaimed water has been practiced for both non-potable reuse as is current common practice (Asano and Cotruvo 2004).
and indirect potable reuse applications since the 1960s. The major Managed water reuse projects have historically provided multiple
advantage of subsurface storage is the potential improvement in water treatment barriers for the removal of microbial pathogens and organics
quality that occurs during the groundwater recharge process. Unlike to protect public health (Anders et al. 2004; Weiss et al. 2005; Hoppe-
subsurface storage, surface storage with reclaimed water can result in a Jones et al. 2010; Betancourt et al. 2014). Collection data on human
significant deterioration of water quality from secondary contamination pathogenic virus concentrations and removal at wastewater treatment
and from algal blooms (Asano 2007). plants (WWTPs) is necessary to support a more accurate determination
Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) including riverbank filtration of log removal requirements for potable reuse projects. Equally
(RBF), soil aquifer treatment (SAT) and aquifer recharge and recover important is the assessment of the relative transport and reduction of
(ARR) provides a natural and sustainable wastewater reclamation and viruses during managed aquifer and recharge.

4 5
A National Research Council (NRC) Committee on Assessment of site-specific characteristics, there will be considerable uncertainty
Water Reuse as an Approach for Meeting Future Water Supply Needs, about the ability of environmental buffers to remove contaminants.
convened by the Water Science and Technology Board, conducted a Constructed wetlands, soil-aquifer treatment, and riverbank filtration
comprehensive study of the potential for water reclamation and reuse are all natural treatment processes that when combined with traditional
of municipal wastewater to expand and enhance the nation’s available and other advanced treatment processes may serve public perception
water supply alternatives (NRC 2012). The committee was tasked to (community acceptance to potable reuse projects) and treatment
address technical, economic, institutional, and social issues associated goals (AWWA/WEF 2008; NRC 2012).
with increased adoption of water reuse and to provide an updated This case covers key aspects of a case study that evaluated the
perspective of a wide range of reuse applications, including drinking removal of selected pathogenic human enteric viruses at three full-
water, non-potable urban uses, irrigation, industrial process water, scale MAR systems located in different regions of the United States
groundwater recharge, and ecological enhancement. The committee (Arizona, Colorado, and California). These MAR systems differ in
performed a critical assessment of water reuse as an approach to meet treatment technologies and uses of application after recharge. The
future water supply needs, and showed that although reuse is not a feasibility of MAR projects in the context of developing nations is also
panacea, the amount of wastewater discharged to the environment discussed.
is of such quantity that it could play a significant role in the overall
water resource picture and complement other strategies, such as
water conservation. The committee recognised that de facto reuse
of wastewater effluents as a water supply is common in many of the
2. Case Study: Virus Removal by MAR at
nation’s water systems, with some drinking water treatment plants using
waters from which a large fraction originated as wastewater effluent Three Full Scale Operations
from upstream communities, especially under low-flow conditions. The
committee also acknowledged that natural systems are employed in
most potable water reuse systems to provide an environmental buffer. 2.1. Description of the MAR Sites
However, it cannot be demonstrated that such “natural” barriers
provide any public health protection that is not also available by other The three different full-scale MAR sites studied represent different
engineering processes (e.g., advanced treatment processes, reservoir locations in the Western United States, different wastewater treatment
storage) (NRC 2012). processes prior to recharge, and different recharge operations and
An environmental buffer is defined as a water body or aquifer uses of application after MAR (Table 1).
that provides a “natural” separation of time and space between The North Campus facility part of the Prairie Waters Project in
wastewater treatment and water supply. Environmental buffers act Brighton, Colorado is situated along the South Platte River (Figure 1).
like natural treatment systems that may reduce the concentration Water is abstracted via a riverbank filtration well field located adjacent
of contaminants through various attenuation processes, provide an to the river. The site is located 18 miles downstream of the point of
opportunity to blend or dilute the reclaimed water, and increase the discharge of the largest wastewater treatment facility in the region. From
amount of time between when the reclaimed water is produced and the point of discharge, the wastewater takes approximately 18–20 h to
when it is introduced into the water supply. Environmental buffers reach the well field (during low flow conditions in the river). The wells are
may have different attributes that affect the removal of contaminants, located at a distance of 100 to 300 feet (31 to 92 m) from the riverbank
the amount of dilution, or the residence time. Removal of viruses and are screened at depths of 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 m) below ground
in riverbank filtration systems is a function of travel distance and surface. During the time of sampling, the river water was dominated by
time. The NRC committee acknowledges that without good data on wastewater discharge (>85% based on flow data). Several abstraction

6 7
Table 1: MAR Systems and Treatment Technologies Prior to Recharge river to reach the wells was estimated to be between 5 and to greater
than 15 days depending on well location. The soil composition at the
site was characterised by alluvial sand with some gravel and silts.
MAR System/ Wastewater Recharge Uses of appli-
Location treatment operation cation after
process prior to recharge PW26
recharge

PW20
North Campus Activated sludge Riverbank filt- Aquifer recharge
facility part of the treatment (nitrifi- ration followed and recovery
Prairie Waters cation/denitrifica- by infiltration via (indirect potable
Project in Brigh- tion) chlorination/ surface spreading reuse)
ton, (CO) along dechlorination basins (soil-aqui-
the South Plate fer treatment)
River.

Sweetwater Biotowers (trick- Wastewater Groundwater

Recharge Facility ling filters) effluent fed to recharge (winter)
in Tucson (AZ) Chlorination/ spreading basins Landscape irriga-
adjacent to the dechlorination tion (summer)
Roger Road
wastewater treat-
ment plant.

Recharge basin Activated sludge Infiltration via Aquifer recharge

testing facility treatment (nitri- surface spreading and recovery
located at the fication/denitrifi- (indirect potable
north end of cation) reuse)
San Gabriel Secondary clarifi-
River Coastal cation PW11
Basin Spreading tertiary dual-me-
Grounds in the dia filtration
Montebello Fore- (anthracite and PW10
bay (CA) sand) chlorina-
tion/dechlorin-
ation Figure 1: Aerial map of the riverbank filtration well field along South Platte River at Brighton,
Colorado showing locations of sampled wells (PW: production well) (Drewes et al. 2015)

wells of the North Campus facility along the river were sampled, some The Sweetwater Recharge Facility is located in Tucson, Arizona
on several occasions. The water from all operational riverbank filtration adjacent to the Roger Road wastewater treatment plant (Figure 2).
wells was combined before being pumped to an adjacent aquifer Wastewater effluent from the plant is fed to spreading basins for
recharge and recovery site where it was subsequently infiltrated via groundwater recharge, largely during the winter months. During
surface spreading basins for additional soil-aquifer treatment. Based on the summer months, the water is subsequently extracted for use in
tracer tests (i.e., conductivity, temperature), the time for water from the landscape irrigation. Two monitoring wells were sampled during an

8 9
infiltration event. The basins are underlain with a coarse sand and
sandy gravel. The basins are infiltrated on wet-dry cycles varying from
2 to 7 days depending upon the season. Infiltration rates average
about one meter per day.

Figure 3: Recharge basin testing facility located at the North end of the San Gabriel River
Coastal Basin Spreading Grounds in the Montebello Forebay, CA (Drewes et al. 2015)

2.2. Analysis of Viruses: Water Sample Collection and Virus

Detection Methods

The enteric viruses selected for the study (Aichi virus and adenovirus)
were those found in the greatest year round concentration in treated
effluent (after activated sludge and trickling filter treatment) at two
wastewater treatment plants in Tucson, Arizona. These viruses showed
little and no seasonal variation in wastewater effluents. Data were also
Figure 2: Sweetwater Recharge Facility in Tucson, AZ adjacent to the Roger Road collected on the occurrence of pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV),
Wastewater Treatment Plant (Drewes et al. 2015) a plant virus that has been suggested as an indicator of wastewater
contamination. Cultivable enteroviruses were included in the analysis
because they have been previously studied the most at MAR operations
The San Gabriel River Coastal Basin Spreading Grounds in the and can easily be grown in cell culture. Reovirus was not part of the
Montebello Forebay, California, was constructed for the purpose original testing plan. However, cell culture and molecular methods
of studying the fate of contaminants during MAR (Figure 3). The allowed the detection of this virus in one sample from the recharge site
site receives wastewater effluents from the San Jose Creek Water in Colorado. As a result, molecular tests were conducted to identify
Reclamation Facilities and the Whittier Narrows Water Reclamation reovirus in all samples. Some technical details on sample collection,
Plant. The infiltration rate at the test basin during this study was processing and analysis are given since the quality of the data is relevant
determined to be in the range of 0.6 to 0.9 m per day. for assessment of pathogens in MAR systems.

10 11
Sample volume sizes for pathogen analysis ranged from 2 L for Table 2: Viruses in the Managed Aquifer Recharge System in Brighton,
wastewater effluent and river water and 5 to 400 L for the groundwater. Colorado
Larger volume samples were processed on site by connection of a
spigot at the wellhead to a filter housing and flow meter in series.
Wastewater effluent, river water and groundwater samples up to 10
L membrane filtration with mixed cellulose esters membranes filters Sample Date Adeno- Entero- Aichi PMMoV Travel
(HAWP, EMD Millipore Corporation, Billerica, MA, USA), as it has been location collected viruses viruses viruses (copies/L) time
previously used in numerous studies for the detection of viruses by (copies/L) (copies/L) (copies/L) (days)

qPCR in different water and wastewater matrices. For larger volumes

of groundwater a virus concentration method using a NanoCeram filter Discharge at 10/09/12 3.22 ×105 5.42 ×103 1.23 ×104 8.99 x 106 -
Metro plant 10/17/12 1.83 ×105 3.19 ×103 1.05 ×104 5.84 ×105 -
(Argonide Corporation, Sanford, FL, USA) with a non-proteinaceous (Effluent) 10/30/12 1.07 ×105 5.27 ×104 4.73 ×104 3.41 ×106 -
eluting solution (1.0% sodium polyphosphate solution with 0.05 M
glycine) was used as they have been found to result in the concentration South Platte 10/09/12 1.82 ×103 6.89 ×102 1.23 ×104 8.99 ×106 -
of fewer substances that interfere with virus detection by PCR. Viral River 10/17/12 9.56 ×104 3.35 ×101 1.05 ×104 5.84 ×105 -
adjacent 10/30/12 2.73 ×101 7.20 ×102 4.73 ×104 3.41 ×106 -
DNA extraction for detection of adenovirus plus viral RNA extraction to well field 05/29/13 8.59 ×102 2.52 ×102
and Reverse Transcription for detection of enterovirus, Aichi virus and
PMMoV were performed according to laboratory standard procedures. PW10 10/09/12 <4.29* ×100 5.00 ×101 <8.57 ×100 4.25 ×101 ~5
Real-time amplification was applied for detection of virus genomes 10/17/12 <4.29 ×100 <8.57 ×100 <8.57 ×100 3.91 ×102 ~5
10/30/12 <4.29 ×100 <8.57 ×100 <8.57 ×100 5.90 ×102 ~5
performed with the LightCycler 480 Real-Time PCR Instrument II 05/29/13 <6.00 ×100 <1.20 ×101 <1.20 ×101 3.56 ×101 ~5
(Roche Applied Science, Indianapolis, IN, USA) using primers and
probes described in detail elsewhere (Betancourt et al. 2014). Absolute PW11 10/30/12 <5.25 ×100 <1.05 ×101 <1.05 ×101 8.55 ×102 ~5
quantification of the viruses studied was expressed as viral copy
PW 18 05/29/13 1.20 ×100 4.00 ×10-1 4.00 ×10-1 1.35 ×101 >10
numbers or gene copies that were derived from standard curves.
All groundwater samples that were positive for either enteric viruses PW20 1/10/13 <1.50 ×101 <3.00 ×101 <3.00 ×101 1.8 ×102 >10
or PMMoV were tested in cell culture for the presence of infectious
viruses. Filter concentrates were assayed on the buffalo green monkey PW26 10/30/12 <4.20 ×100 <8.40 ×100 <8.40 ×100 4.04 ×103 >15
(BGM) kidney cell line. Rigorous attention to avoidance of laboratory 01/10/13 <9.00 ×100 <1.80 ×101 <1.80 ×101 <1.80 ×101 >15

contamination was maintained throughout the procedures following

Combined 01/10/13 <1.20 ×101 <2.40 ×101 <2.40 ×101 <2.40 ×101 5 to >15
quality assurance and quality control guidelines implemented in the 500
Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Cell Culture of the Department
of Soil, Water and Environmental Science at the University of Arizona. Combined 01/10/13 <6.00 ×100 <1.20 ×101 <1.20 ×101 <1.20 ×101 5 to >15
1000

Combined 05/29/13 <9.00 ×10-1 <1.80 ×100 <1.80 ×100 1.02 ×102 5 to >15
2.3. Virus Genomes and Removal by MAR Systems 400

The Colorado MAR site was sampled several times during the course
of this study because of the large number of wells, continuous
operation and ease of access. The river was dominated by upstream PW – Production wells. PW10 located 100 feet from the riverbank. All other sampled
wastewater discharge (>85%) during the time the samples were wells were on average 300 feet from the riverbank. Combined 400, 500, and 1000 -
Indicates volume of water sampled in litres from combined collector.

ND – not done. PMMV - Pepper mild mottle virus

12
collected. Adenoviruses and PMMoV were observed in the highest Table 3: Viruses in Managed Aquifer Recharge Systems in California and
concentration in the wastewater effluent that has been sampled at the Arizona
treatment plant prior to discharge into the South Platte River (Table
2). During travel down the river the concentration of viruses in the
wastewater decreased by 90 to 99% (1 to 2 log10) on average as detected
by qPCR. PMMoV was detected in all of the abstraction wells adjacent Sample Adenoviruses Enteroviruses Aichi viruses Pepper mild Travel time
to the river and in the combined riverbank filtered water (the water Location (copies/L) (copies/L) (copies/L) mottle virus (days)

from the producing wells is mixed), which is subsequently conveyed to (copies/L)

surface spreading basins for infiltration at the aquifer recharge recovery

facility of the North Campus. Enteroviruses were detected in one of the Test Basin,
Montebello
wells (PW-10) on one occasion by qPCR. This sample was also positive Forebay,
for infectious virus using cell culture and reovirus was identified by PCR. California
No amplification was observed for adenoviruses, enteroviruses and
Aichi viruses confirming that these pathogenic viruses were not present Effluent  8.07 ×101 <6.60 ×101 <6.60 ×101 <6.60 ×101 -
Well WP-Z <6.50 ×100 <1.30 ×101 <1.30 ×101  7.59 ×102 0.45
in the sample. Well PR-9 <6.90 ×100 <1.38 ×101 <1.38 ×101  2.10 ×101 3.5
At the California site, only adenoviruses were detected by qPCR at Well PR-15 <6.30 ×100 <1.26 ×101 <1.26 ×101 <1.26 ×101 44.5
a low number in the treated effluent (Table 3). The wastewater at this Well PR-14 <7.20 ×100 <1.44 ×101 <1.44 ×101 <1.44 ×101 128.5
site receives the greatest amount of treatment prior to recharge as
Sweetwater
compared to the sites in Colorado and Arizona and this may explain the Recharge
low numbers of virus in the samples collected. However, it could also be Site,
related to other factors such as incidence of infection in the community Arizona
and seasonal differences. Only PMMoV was detected in the samples from
Effluent  9.37 ×103  3.46 ×104  4.76 ×104  5.15 ×106 -
shallow groundwater at the site. It was only detected in groundwater of Well MW5 <8.40 ×101 <1.68 ×102  1.52 ×104  1.44 ×106 5
wells with three or fewer days of travel time in the subsurface. Well WR-69B <3.56 ×100 <7.11 ×100 <7.11 ×100 <7.11 ×100 ~14
At the Sweetwater Recharge site all the studied viruses were detected
in the wastewater effluent in large concentrations. Both Aichi viruses
and PMMoV were detected in one well with a 5-day travel time. None
of the viruses were detected in a well with a 14-day travel time. Unlike
the other two sites, attempts were made to sample the same effluent
as it travelled from the basins to the monitoring well. The sampling was
timed (synoptic sampling) so that the same body of water was sampled
as it travelled through the subsurface. Samples showing the presence
of any virus were assayed in cell culture and no infectious virus was
detected in any of the samples from California or Arizona.
The relative amount of removal of the different viruses was calculated
for the different sites when viruses were detected in the wastewater
effluent being recharged. Table 4 summarises the degree of estimated
removal of the different viruses at the study sites in wells with different
travel times.

14
Determination of the degree of removal was limited by the concentration Table 4: Log Removals of Viruses by Recharge at the Three Managed
of the viruses in the treated wastewater being applied to the sites and Aquifer Recharge Systems
the volume of concentrate assayed. It was usually easier to determine
removal of PMMoV because it was usually present in the largest
numbers in the wastewater effluent. Aichi and PMMoV were removed
to a similar degree after a 5-day travel time at the Sweetwater Recharge Site/well Well Residence Adenovirus Enterovirus Aichi PMMoV
site. However, the removal of Aichi viruses exceeded 2.8 logs after 14 depth time (days) virus
days travel time and PMMoV was removed by almost 5 logs. Only the (feet)
removal of adenoviruses could be determined at the test basin site in
California as it was the only virus detected in the applied wastewater Arizona
effluent. It was reduced by at least one log in less than a day of travel MW5 30 5 >2.05 >2.31 0.50 0.55
time. It was interesting that removal of the PMMoV at the Colorado site WR-69-B 152.2 ~14 >3.42 >3.69 >3.83 >5.86
was almost identical for the three wells tested, suggesting a removal
California
efficiency in the 3 to 4 log range. At all of the sites, PMMoV appeared
WP-2 21.2 0.45 >1.09 ND ND ND
to be removed the least and should be considered as a conservative
PR-9 35 3 >1.07 ND ND ND
tracer of the enteric viruses studied. PR- 15 40.5 49.5 >1.05 ND ND ND
The only infectious virus detected in this study was reovirus, a PR-14 70.5 128.5 >1.11 ND ND ND
double-stranded (ds) RNA virus included within the family Reoviridae.
Colorado
Because it has been difficult to associate reoviruses with specific
illnesses in humans they have not received as much study as the PW10*
#1 (10/09/12) 30 ~5 >2.63 1.15 >2.61 3.76
other enteric viruses. Several studies using cell culture infectivity have #2 (10/17/12) >4.35 ND >3.07 2.72
found them to occur in concentrations greater than enteroviruses in #3 (10/30/12) >0.80 >2.70 >3.35 2.76
untreated wastewater and after disinfection by chlorination. They are #4 (05/29/13) >2.16 ND >3.31 3.69
more resistant to UV light disinfection than the enteroviruses. They also PW11 29 ~5 >0.72 >1.84 >2.49 2.60
appear to survive for prolonged periods of time in water. In a study of PW26 24 >15 >0.81 >1.93 >2.58 1.92
drinking water wells, it was the most common virus detected by PCR.
Thus, it would appear that reoviruses may warrant additional studies
to assess their removal by MAR.
The results of the study indicated that residence time played an PW10 was sampled four different times
ND = not detected in treated wastewater
important role in the removal efficiency of pathogens (i.e., viral attenuation)
NT = treated wastewater not yet tested
by the three natural treatment systems. All viruses were removed below
detection limits of the method during riverbank filtration and soil-aquifer
treatment. The ability to quantify the removal of human enteric viruses
was limited by the concentrations of the particular virus in the infiltrated
wastewater, but it appeared that at least a ~2 log removal or more could
be expected with a travel time of ~15 days. The study also revealed
that PMMoV might serve as a conservative tracer of virus removal for
managed aquifer recharge operations. The occurrence of reoviruses in a
riverbank filtration well warrants further study. Reoviruses are ubiquitous

16
in their geographical distribution and therefore have been reported References
to occur in groundwater from different geographical areas. These
viruses are also very stable in the environment. The application of Alidina, Mazahirali, Dong Li, Mohamed Ouf, and Jörg E. Drewes. 2014. “Role of primary
substrate composition and concentration on attenuation of trace organic chemicals in
next generation sequencing technologies (e.g., metagenomics) for a managed aquifer recharge systems.” Journal of Environmental Management 144:58–66.
complete representation of the viruses present in environmental waters doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2014.04.032.
may expand our knowledge about virus diversity, fate, and distribution
in managed aquifer recharged systems. Anders, Robert, William A. Yanko, Roy A. Schroeder, and James L. Jackson. 2004. Virus
fate and transport during recharge using recycled water at a research field site in the
Montebello Forebay, Los Angeles County, California, 1997–2000; Scientific Investigations
Report 2004-5161. U.S. Geological Survey: Reston, Virginia.

Asano, Takashi, Franklin Burton, Harold L. Leverenz, Ryujiro Tsuchihashi, and George
3. MAR Projects in the Context of Developing Tchobanoglous. 2007. Water Reuse: Issues, Technologies, and Applications. New York:
McGraw-Hill.
Countries
Asano, Takashi, and Joseph A Cotruvo. 2004. “Groundwater recharge with reclaimed
municipal wastewater: Health and regulatory considerations.” Water Research 38:1941–
MAR systems have been recognised as simple, low-tech, and cost- 1951.
effective treatment systems that may be economically viable for
developing countries (Maliva 2014). However, there are many AWWA/WEF (American Water Works Association and Water Federation). 2008. Using
environmental and public health concerns related to sewage reclaimed Water to Augment Potable Water resources. 2nd Ed. Denver, CO: American
Water Works Association.
contamination in these countries, e.g. lack of wastewater collection
and treatment and/or inadequate treatment of wastewater. Moreover, Bekele, Elise, Simon Toze, Bradley Patterson, and Simon Higginson. 2011. “Managed
good-quality water in high demand in urban and overpopulated peri- aquifer recharge of treated wastewater: Water quality changes resulting from
infiltration through the vadose zone.” Water Research 45:5764–5772. doi:10.1016/j.
urban areas in developing countries exerts significant pressure on
watres.2011.08.058.
scarce and highly impacted water resources. In this context, water
reuse makes a lot of sense for these regions, however any water reuse Betancourt, Walter Q, Masaaki Kitajima, Alexandre D. Wing, Julia Regnery, Jörg E.
project may not be feasible until wastewater collection and treatment Drewes, Ian L. Pepper, and Charles P. Gerba. 2014. “Assessment of virus removal by
managed aquifer recharge at three full-scale operations.” Journal of Environmental
can be adequately addressed. MAR systems also require sustainable
Science and Health, Part A: Toxic/Hazardous Substances and Environmental Engineering
management to successfully maintain the attributes necessary for 49:1685–1692. doi: 10.1080/10934529.2014.951233.
potable and non-potable water reuse.
Clinton, Tracy. 2007. Reclaimed Water Aquifer Storage and Recovery: Potential Changes
in Water Quality. WateReuse Foundation Report. Alexandria, VA, USA: WateReuse
Foundation.

4. Acknowledgment Dillon, Peter, Paul Pavelic, Declan Page, Helen Beringen, and John Ward. 2009. Managed
aquifer recharge: An Introduction. Waterlines Report Series No. 13, February 2009.
Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia. http://www.nwc.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_
The authors thank the WateReuse Research Foundation (WRRF) for its file/0011/10442/Waterlines_MAR_completeREPLACE.pdf.
financial, technical and administrative assistance in funding and managing
the project through which this information was derived. The authors Dillon, Peter. 2005. “Future management of aquifer recharge”. Hydrogeology Journal
13:313–316.
gratefully acknowledge the Water Replenishment District of Southern
California, the County Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County, Aurora Drewes J., Regnery J., Dickenson E., Gerba C.P., Snyder S.A., Missimer T. 2015. Role
Water and Tucson Water for their financial and technical support. of Retention Time in the Environmental Buffer of Indirect Potable Reuse Projects: An

18 19
Investigation of Managed Aquifer. WateReuse Foundation Report. Alexandria, VA, USA:
WateReuse Foundation. CASE 2
Hoppe-Jones, Christiane, Gretchen Oldham, and Jörg E. Drewes. 2010. “Attenuation of
total organic carbon and unregulated trace organic chemicals in U.S. riverbank filtration
systems.” Water Research 44:4643– 4659. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2010.06.022.
Water Sensitive Urban Design for Metropolitan
Lima, Peru – “Wastewater Treatment Park: The
Maliva, Robert G. 2014. “Economics of managed aquifer and recharge.” Water 6:1257–
1279.
Children’s Park” – Application of Vertical Flow
Constructed Wetlands in Public Open Space for
Missimer Thomas M., Jörg E. Drewes, Robert G. Maliva, and Gary Amy. 2011. “Aquifer
Recharge and Recovery: Groundwater Recharge Systems for Treatment, Storage, and
Reuse of Treated Wastewater (Peru)
Water Reclamation.” Ground Water 49:771.
Rosa Miglio, Alexandra Garcia, Eva Nemcova, and Rossana Poblet1
National Research Council. 2012. Water Reuse: Potential for Expanding the Nation’s
Water Supply through Reuse of Municipal Wastewater. Washington, D.C.

Pang, Liping. 2009. “Microbial removal rates in subsurface media estimated from
published studies of field experiments and large soil cores.” Journal of Environmental
Quality 38:1531–1559. doi:10.2134/jeq2008.0379.
Abstract
Sharma Saroj K., and Gary Amy. 2011. “Natural Treatment Systems.” In Water Quality The Peruvian capital, Metropolitan Lima, with over 9 million inhabitants
and Treatment: A Handbook on Drinking Water, edited by James K. Edzwald, 1–33. located in the desert of the Pacific coast is characterised by inequalities
Denver, Colorado: American Water Works Association.
in access to basic services such as drinking water and wastewater
Sudhakaran, Sairam, Sabine Lattemann, and Gary L. Amy. 2013. “Appropriate drinking treatment as well as access to healthy green areas. Lima is one of
water treatment processes for organic micropollutants removal based on experimental the Latin American cities with the amount of least green areas per
and model studies – A multi-criteria analysis study.” Science of The Total Environment inhabitant (Economist Intelligence Unit 2010). Many public and private
442:478–488. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2012.09.076.
green areas in Lima are irrigated either with scarce potable water or
Weiss W. Joshua, Edward J. Bouwer, Ramon Aboytes, Mark W. LeChevallier, Charles with polluted surface water, while the reuse of wastewater remained
R. O’Melia, Binh T. Le, and Kellogg J. Schwab. 2005. “Riverbank filtration for control as low as 10% in 2011 (Kosow et al. 2013). Within the research project
of microorganisms: results from field monitoring.” Water Research 39:1990–2001.
LiWa (Lima Water) the Lima Ecological Infrastructure Strategy (LEIS) was
doi:10.1016/j.watres.2005.03.018.
developed. Its aim is to integrate landscape and urban planning and
design with water management in order to support the urban water
cycle – including the reuse of wastewater – and to increase access to
green public spaces that perform ecosystem services for the benefit of
the communities. At a technical level the use of constructed wetlands
appears to be one possible water-sensitive urban design strategy for a
dry region such as Lima. They generate green areas by themselves and

1
Rosa Miglio  • Alexandra Garcia • Eva Nemcova • Rossana Poblet.
Agriculture Engineer, National Agrarian University (UNALM), Lima, Peru.
e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

20 21
therefore have a high potential to be integrated in open space design. to the public water supply or wastewater services. They occupy land
In 2013 the “Wastewater Treatment Park – Children’s Park”, located in such as river corridors or agricultural valleys where they are exposed
the San Martin de Porres district, was built as a recreational area with to risky living conditions and at the same the loss of these areas means
a vertical constructed wetland treating water from a polluted irrigation the loss of areas providing essential ecosystem services to the city.
channel. The wastewater treatment plant was designed by Akut Peru, In many peri-urban areas there is less than 2 m2 of green areas per
and included pre-treatment with bars and settler, and a vertical flow person while other richer areas have more than 20 m2 of green areas
constructed wetland; the plant treats 5.57 m3 d-1 in an area of 50 m2 per person (Eisenberg et al. 2014, 26), manifesting the great inequality
resulting in a hydraulic loading of about 0.11 m3 m-2 d-1. The polluted in distribution throughout the city. Also the richer districts can afford
water has a variable BOD5 and turbidity with peaks of 15.4 mg/L and to use potable water for the irrigation of green areas, while in poorer
1000 NTU respectively. Faecal coliforms vary over a wide range from and mostly peri-urban zones raw or poorly treated wastewater is used
3x102 to 104 CFU/100 ml; and parasites (Ascaris toxocara) were present. for irrigation posing health hazards for the population. The available
The National Agrarian University La Molina (UNALM)-Lima conducted water resources are not efficiently used, with wastewater reuse levels as
monitoring of water quality and social acceptance; the water quality low as only 10% in 2011. The climate change effects over the Andean
monitoring shows that the water quality after the treatment process mountains that are predicted to lead to decreasing water supplies
is significantly improved, reducing health risks to users of the park (Kosow et al. 2013) will increase the challenges Lima is facing. Among
and reducing negative environmental aspects such as smell and the the main obstacles for integrated planning is the lack of a unified view
presence of vectors of waterborne diseases. This case describes the of the city shared by urban and open space planners and designers
project, presents the monitoring results, discusses the constraints and and water engineers. Therefore, to reduce unsustainable practices and
challenges of such a concept, and shares the participative approach urban development processes, an urban water paradigm shift towards
taken to co-design a water sensitive urban design project which can more sustainable practices that take into account the urban water cycle
create socio-environmental awareness to overcome negative conditions are needed (Eisenberg et al. 2014).
over contested peri-urban areas. As the background of Lima requires urgent solutions, the Institute
Keywords: Lima, arid regions, constructed wetland, ecological of Landscape Planning and Ecology (ILPOE) at the University of
infrastructure, green-open space, reuse of wastewater, urban water Stuttgart (Germany), as part of the research project “Sustainable Water
cycle, wastewater treatment, water-sensitive urban design and Wastewater Management in Urban Growth Centres Coping with
Climate Change - Concepts for Metropolitan Lima, Peru, Lima Water
- LiWa”, developed the “Lima Ecological Infrastructures Strategy”
(LEIS). The strategy consists of (1) LEIS Principles to support strategic
1. Introduction urban planning and policy making leading to water-sensitive urban
development, (2) LEIS Tool to support urban planning to consider the
Metropolitan Lima suffers from a water shortage for different relationship between water and green open spaces, and (3) LEIS Manual
reasons: low annual precipitation (< 15 mm), seasonal rivers with with water-sensitive urban design guidelines for project development.
water stress (0-10 m3 sec-1 from May to December), polluted waters Attending the technical support request by the San Martin de Porres
(Fernández-Maldonado 2008), and unsustainable and inefficient water municipality, the LiWa project had chosen the Lower Chillon River
management. The fast population growth in previous decades, the lack watershed to demonstrate the application of LEIS on different scales.
of implementation and modernisation of urban and regional planning The focus of this case is the implemented pilot project “Wastewater
instruments, the economic crisis, and other factors have led to a vast Treatment Park - Children’s Park” that serves as a Water-Sensitive
expansion of informal settlements, especially in peri-urban areas. Many Urban Design (WSUD) example. The implementation process of the
of these settlements and almost 1 million people do not have access pilot project, its design parameters and the results of water quality

22 23
monitoring, social acceptance and lessons learned will be described 3. Context
and discussed. It aims to provide knowledge for the future application of
constructed wetland technology in public open spaces in Metropolitan The study area is over former agricultural land called Chuquitanta, in the
Lima. In a broader scope it aims to reflect on the potentials of LEIS and lower Chillon River watershed in Lima North, in the San Martin de Porres
WSUD as integrative planning and design strategies that support cities district (Figure 1). Chuquitanta is crossed by a network of channels (called
in dry climatic conditions to prepare and cope with water scarcity and ‘acequias’) which are part of an ancient irrigation system. Land use here
climate change effects. has been changing in recent decades due to rapid urban growth and
urban speculation. The area has been rapidly transformed by private
developers implementing informal housing programmes. Due to the
lack of municipal recognition, the new residences lack basic services
2. Aim and Objectives of the Project and infrastructure, and therefore discharge their wastewater and solid
waste into irrigation channels which irrigate not only agricultural land
The main aim of the pilot project was to implement an example of a but also green recreational areas. The poor water quality poses a health
WSUD park that treats contaminated water for reuse in the irrigation of threat to consumers of local crops as well as users of the green areas.
green areas, uses less water than a conventional park in Lima, and at Moreover, due to the urban regularisation processes the acequias are
the same time is an attractive public space for the community. Other being converted into concrete irrigation channels which prevent water
objectives included: from infiltrating the soil and replenishing groundwater. Several channels
have been closed completely which led to desertification of once green
• To promote the use of treated wastewater for reuse in green areas. parks and has in result triggered social conflicts. In this context, a new
• To create new healthy green areas reducing desertification and approach to water and open space design is needed to reinstate local
dust in the area and also benefiting the local community. irrigation channels as sustainable sources of water.
• To demonstrate opportunities to improve wastewater quality
through ecological technologies such as constructed wetlands and
integrate these components into public spaces.
• To raise awareness and show the importance of irrigation channels
as a permanent source of water to support green area generation
and agricultural activities.
• To create awareness of the desert environment and its limited water
resources in relationship to the water demand of green areas by
using only native plant species with low water consumption in the
park design.
• To create synergies among key players, mainly rural and new urban
residents, who use and benefit from the waters transported by the
irrigation channels.
• To serve as a demonstration project for wastewater reuse.

Figure 1: Lower Chillon River Watershed, Metropolitan Lima (Photo: Evelyn Merino Reyna)

24 25
4. Project Description La Florida II comprises around 600 inhabitants and covers approx.
31,740 m2. It includes 8 blocks over 141 single plots, one area
reserved for education and two parks: Park 1 (1,992.2 m2) and Park
4.1. Location 2 (598.16 m2). The larger park (Park 1) is used mainly by male adults
for football practices and is irrigated with polluted water from the
The project is located in La Florida II, one of the new informal housing channel delivered by a pipe. The pilot project is located in the smaller
programmes developed on former agricultural land, and is owned by park (Park 2) situated directly next to the irrigation channel (see Figure
the real estate company Residential SAC. At the fringe of La Florida II, 2). In 2012 this natural canal was converted into a concrete channel
within its administrative boundary, passes the irrigation channel San to comply with the requirements for obtaining the formalisation of
José on its way to agricultural land. The settlement is in the process of La Florida II. The construction led to the removal of trees and grass
obtaining urban legal rights which will be received once the real estate previously maintained by neighbours. The destruction of the plants
company completes all the basic infrastructure. Currently water has to triggered much local communal strife and generated further social
be supplied 2 to 4 times per week by water trucks selling approximately and legal conflicts. Likewise conflicts arose between the community
200 litres (water cylinder capacity) per 2 PEN (0.5 US$ each cylinder) association and the Chuquitanta irrigation committee for modifying
at a price approximately 10 times higher than formal areas connected the acequia route and concreting its borders, as well as the municipal
to public network. The quality of this delivered water is not good, and authorities, for requesting this work as part of an urban regularisation
many residents buy bottled water for human consumption. process that acts “against the environment”.

4.2. Key Actors

The main actors involved with the project are the community from
La Florida II and the community representatives, the Chuquitanta
Irrigation Commission, the Management of Public Utilities and the
Environment of the Municipality of San Martin de Porres, and the
ILPOE’s implementation team.
During the project development different reasons led to the key
actors’ involvement and participation, including long-term conflicts and
social, environmental, political and administrative disputes. The park
site is located in an area that was formerly an “ecological park” and
that was destroyed to fulfil municipal recognition as an urban area or
habilitación urbana. Under these conditions the community requested
technical support to build a new park. Therefore, the park development,
following a participative approach, was used to re-establish dialogue
among neighbours, the Chuquitanta Irrigation Commission, and the
local authorities. During the process it was perceived that the park
development helped to improve relationships between the different
Figure 2: La Florida II settlement: San José irrigation channel and the project area on the left of
actors. But tensions arose around the issue of maintaining the park.
the channel before construction (Photo: Eva Nemcova) Nevertheless, it is important to mention that the partnership between

26 27
these stakeholders is critical for the current and future sustainability of area with dry surfaces and trees to provide shade. Figure 3 shows the
the park and its treatment system. proposal and the park at its inauguration in August 2014.

4.3. Project Methodology

The process was developed to consider the following stages:

• Initial assessment included the study of socio-economic and

environmental conditions, identification of key players, land
survey and water quality test.
• Community training and participatory design workshops 1
included design workshops with the community to define 2
the concept, functions and programme. And served to raise
environmental awareness in general.
• Constructed wetland and design integration included the 3
design and elaboration of construction documents for treatment
system and park components.
• Implementation of the park. Public electrification to support
the constructed wetland performance and public lighting inside
the park was obtained in addition to the permission from the Figure 3: Wastewater Treatment Park – Children’s Park on the inauguration day in August 2014,
consisting of: 1) treatment system with constructed wetland and reservoir, 2) green recreational
Chuquitanta Irrigation Commission to use water from the San area with fruit trees, and 3) play area with dry surfaces (Photo: Evelyn Merino Reyna)
José channel.
• Testing and training included the testing of the treatment system,
training of the municipal officers in operating and maintaining the 4.4.1. Park Water Demand
constructed wetland and the park in general.
• Initial park monitoring and performance: the water monitoring Only 40% of the total park area is planted with grass and native fruit
started after the inauguration of the park and was conducted by a trees. The remaining area consists of dry surfaces with solitary trees
UNALM student as a final project. In addition, regular visits led by of native species (mimosa) and xerophytes. The careful selection of
former ILPOE project manager Rossana Poblet to speak with main vegetation and the use of pressurised irrigation systems resulted in
actors and follow up on the park performance and maintenance a low overall water demand (~1 m3 d-1) for the total area. Thus, the
by municipal authorities and neighbours were carried out. remaining treated water can help to irrigate the second park (~2000 m2)
in La Florida II.

4.4. Main Project Characteristics

4.4.2. Description of the Wastewater Treatment System
The park comprises three main parts including (1) the constructed
wetland system with a reservoir of treated wastewater, (2) a green The wastewater treatment plant was designed by Akut Peru and
recreational area with fruit trees for passive recreation, and (3) a play included a pre-treatment system with bars (20 mm distance) and a

28 29
settler, a vertical flow constructed wetland model WTL-Rotaria, and a NTU respectively. Faecal coliforms vary over a wide range from 3x102
reservoir. The wetland has an area of 50 m2 (5 m x 10 m) and a total to 104  CFU/100 ml; and parasites (Áscaris toxocara) were present.
depth of 0.90 m. It was designed as an elevated flower bed to utilise the However, only one analysis of faecal coliforms was performed and is
slope in the par k, with 0.40 m underground and 0.5 m above ground. presented here as a preliminary result.
The constructed wetland was filled with coarse sand and gravel
according to the details described in Table 1, from the bottom to the
top of the constructed wetland. 4.4.3. Design of Open Space and Integration with Treatment
Technology

Table 1: Constructed Wetland Filling Material Distribution The constructed wetland is situated at the highest point of the park
in order to reduce the need for pumping. The elevated edge of the
constructed wetland was designed as a seating bench with a wooden
Gravel to cover the drainage pipe 0.15 deck and educational panels informing the community about the water
source and quality, treatment process and reuse. The plant species of
Coarse sand without dust 0.50 the constructed wetland contribute significantly to the aesthetic aspect
of the treatment system and are key features of the park. Figures 4 and
Gravel Surface protection 0.10 5 show some images of the Wastewater Treatment Park – Children’s
Park a year after inauguration.
Freeboard 0.15

Total height 0.90

Source: Akut Peru

Initially two different vegetation species were planted, Vetiver

Chrysopogon zizanioides, and Paraguitas Cyperus alternifolius, but
most of the Paraguitas plants did not establish well and three months
after the first plantation they were replaced with Vetiver. A few Paraguitas
plants did remain in the bed and are still present in the wetland.
The treatment system is an automatized system that depends on
pumping, which feeds the treatment plant in cycles of 48 hours, making
a total of 3 cycles per week. The feeding of the vertical wetland is
programmed according to pulses, which ensures the oxygenation of
the system.
The plant treats 5.57 m3 d-1 distributed in an area of 50 m2 resulting
in a hydraulic loading of about 0.11 m3 m-2 d-1. The polluted water Figure 4: Constructed wetland with the seating bench, wood deck and educational panel about
has a variable BOD5 and turbidity with peaks of 15.4 mg/L and 1000 the San José water source, “San Pepito droplet” (Photo: Alexandra Garcia)

30 31
 a slight reduction is registered with an average value of 7.39.
This could be linked to the microbial activity that acidified the
environment (carbonic acid), but this value does not affect the use
of treated water for the irrigation of green areas.
• Regarding electric conductivity, the influent of the system had
an average value of 548 μS/cm and in every sample it increased
reaching a value of 922 μS/cm on average. However, this increase
does not influence the use of treated wastewater for the irrigation
of green areas according FAO guidelines.
• Turbidity was reduced drastically in the settler and wetland outlet
(96%), the average value in the outlet of the wetland being 1.66 NTU.
• BOD5 reduction in the system reached an average value of 77%,
but for the last two samples (1 year and 4 months after the treatment
plant started operations) efficiency increased to 93 % on average.
• Faecal coliform reduction in the system reached an average of
80%, although in most cases at the outlet of the system the value
Figure 5: Green productive recreational area and the dry play area in the foreground (Photo: of faecal coliform did not reach 1,000 CFU/100 ml.
Alexandra Garcia)
• Regarding parasites, it was possible to perform only one test. In
this sample of the raw wastewater 15 eggs/L were found and 100%
were removed at the outlet of the wetland. The species identified
was Ascaris taxocara, which is associated with pollution originating
5. Water Quality Monitoring and Results from the excreta of domestic animals such as dogs and cats.
• Water turbidity samples from the three sampling points are shown
Physicochemical and microbiological parameters were analysed weekly in Figure 6: inlet of the system (EI), outlet to the settler (ES) and
for two months, seven samples were tested using APHA-AWWA-WEF vertical wetland outlet (EH), respectively.
Standard methods.
Temperature and pH were measured in the field; the other parameters
including the microbiological parameters were measured in the Sanitation
and Environment Lab of UNALM. The results of the physicochemical
and microbiological analysis obtained to date are showed in Table 2. EH ES EI
Preliminary results for parasites are showed in Table 3.

5.1. Removal Efficiency

The analysis of the monitoring water quality showed the following results:

• The pH of the wastewater was slightly alkaline. It entered the Figure 6: Observed turbidity in water sampling from inlet of the system (EI), outlet to the settler
treatment system with an average value of 7.66 and at the outlet (ES) and vertical wetland outlet (EH) (Source: Alexandra Garcia)

32 33
 Table 2: Preliminary Water Test Results Including Physicochemical and
Microbiological Analysis

6. Social Perception – Level of Acceptance

NO SAM- PRELIMINARY
PLING REPORTS A survey was conducted in order to evaluate the sustainability of the
POINT
treatment system and its acceptance by the local inhabitants. In total
20 local inhabitants were part of the survey, most of them were women
Temper. pH Electric. Turbidity Suspen- BOD5 FAECAL
(°C) Standard Conduct. (NTU) ded (mg/l) COLIF younger than 35 years old and were living for less than 5 years in the
(CE) solids (CFU/ area (Figure 7).
(μS/cm) (mg/l) 100 ml)

1 EI N 7.35 1044 23 2000 15.37 N Gender Age Group Time of residence (years)
ES N 7.14 1184 19.4 1800 13.96 -
10%
EH N 7.15 1271 1.1 200 3.9 N 16% 20% 30%

2 EI 27.2 7.73 1044 162 600 14.2 300  <18

ES 27.5 7.67 1184 140 200 9.2 -  <25  <1
45% 55% 32% 42%  <35 50%  <3
EH 28.6 7.58 1271 1.84 <100 4.67 < 20  Female  <45  <5
 Male  >45+  >5+
3 EI 30.0 7.93 544 212 2000 9.53 4540
ES 29.6 7.53 516 44.2 200 2.94 - Figure 7. Profile of respondents to the survey to assess the treatment system
EH 29.9 7.54 625 1.98 <100 1.35 680 (Source: Garcia Rospigliosi 2015)

4 EI 26.9 7.71 346 94 1000 2.68 420

ES 27.2 7.50 477 47.5 200 1.27 - The survey questions were related to how aware inhabitants are
EH 27.6 7.55 592 0.75 <100 0.56 240 about health risks connected to the use of polluted water from the
channel for irrigating green areas, how it is affecting their lives, and
5 EI 23.8 7.58 502 83.1 500 6.17 980
ES 23.6 7.71 501 73.1 100 3.17 -
to what extent they would be willing to participate in combatting
EH 23.3 7.64 612 4.07 <100 2.87 110 the contamination. A scale from 1 to 5 was used to set the degree of
contamination from 1 = “it is not polluted” through 5 = “it is highly
6 EI N 7.71 368 >1000 15600 7.75 >10000 polluted”. The results are shown in Figure 8.
ES N 7.55 510 953 3000 3.22 …
EH N 7.20 1395 1.25 <100 0.45 1520

7 EI N 7.63 599 102 5200 9.06 7740 From 1 to 5, How contaminated Do you believe the irrigation of
ES N 7.46 506 30.4 600 2.94 … you believe the water used to green spaces with contaminated
EH N 7.10 1282 0.64 <100 0.71 1080 irregate the green spaces of your water affects your quality of life?
community is?

5% 5%

Table 3: Preliminary results, Wastewater Treatment Park – Children’s

park – parasites 45%  1  YES
 2  NO
45%  3 95%  SOMETIMES
 4
NO SAMPLING POINT PRELIMINARY REPORTS  5

Eggs number/L SPECIES FOUND

1 EI 15 Ascaris Toxocara
EH 0 Ascaris

34 35

EI: inlet point to the wastewater treatment system, ES: outlet of settler,
EH: outlet of wetland, N: undetermined
 Do you believe that the local Would you be willing to take part
government takes proper in a sustainable plan to manage the Do you consider that a good Would you be willing to
responsibility of the current contamination of the water and/ administration of the park is participate in the park’s
contamination? or area? being done? management and care?
5%
15% 15% 20% 15%

 YES  YES  YES  YES

 NO  NO  NO  NO
85%  DON’T KNOW 85%  DON’T 75%  DON’T KNOW 85%  DON’T
KNOW KNOW

Figure 8: Perception of the pollution level of water in the irrigation channel and willingness to Figure 9: Perception regarding the park construction, complaints made, management and
participate in a sustainable plan to management it (Source: Garcia Rospigliosi, 2015) willingness to participate in a management programme (Source: Garcia Rospigliosi, 2015)

The inhabitants were asked how they perceive the park, their Finally, the survey focused on determining how much knowledge
complaints regarding the park, how they perceive the management of the inhabitants have gained about the treatment system installed in the
the park, and if they would be willing to get involved in the management. park. The results are shown in Figure 10.
The results are shown in Figure 9.

Do you know what is a Did you know that there is a

Has the construction of the park Have you noticed the presence constructed wetland and how constructed wetland in the park?
caused you any trouble? of any unwanted animal or does it work?
species at the park?
5%

5%
10%
45% 55%  YES  YES
30%  NO  NO
 YES  YES 95%
 NO  NO
90%  SOMETIMES 65%  SOMETIMES

Has the wetland operating From 1 to 5, How important you

caused you any trouble? consider the constructed wetland
What type of species cause you Do you consider that the park installed in your community is?
trouble? has improved the landscape
value of the area? 15% 15%

 YES  1
21%  NO  2
100%  SOMETIMES 70%  3
43%  RODENT  YES  4
 INSECTS  NO  5
36%  OTHERS 100%  DON’T
KNOW
Figure 10: Knowledge the inhabitants have about the treatment system and its importance
(Source: Garcia Rospigliosi, 2015)

36 37
7. Current Performance of the Park of the treatment system could not be completed successfully and
the irrigation needed to be operated manually by a person.
After the inauguration of the project in August 2014, the LiWa team • The efficient irrigation system design is used only partially due to
handed over the project to the neighbours and the local municipality. a lack of knowledge. Therefore the practice of flooding the green
After the municipal elections in 2014 a new district administration took areas for irrigation continues.
over in January 2015, only four months after the project inauguration, a • Safety remains a very important issue to consider when deciding
new situation that was a threat for the park operation and maintenance. on a technology. Surrounding areas are characterised by crime,
In 2015 all technical staff including the top management level were and alcohol and drug abuse. These aspects have to play an
replaced as well as many maintenance workers and gardeners. The important role when selecting the treatment technology and
well-organised community La Florida II demanded the operation and plant species. The height of the plans when fully grown has to be
maintenance of the new park by the municipality and presented the considered. The positive perception of the constructed wetland
project to the new district administration. At the same time the LiWa as an ecological treatment system could change in a negative
project provided the means to employ a neighbour to overcome way if dense vegetation becomes a hiding space for criminals.
the transition period between the old and new administrations and An incident of attempted attack was experienced and therefore
the time with lack of maintenance from the municipal side. Later the community decided to cut down the vegetation to a medium
on the new municipality dedicated one worker for operation and height.
maintenance, but with insufficient time as the person is in charge of
the maintenance of several municipal green areas at the same time. The project is characterised by positive aspects and innovation:
Also there was limited training about the operation and maintenance
provided. Currently one municipal worker is in charge of the operation • The implementation of a wastewater treatment plant in a public
of the pumping system and irrigation and is present almost regularly space is an innovative and unique case. On the basis of the
three times a week. questionnaires it could be assumed that the integration of a
treatment system with recreational use was successful.
• The water quality monitoring shows that the water quality after the
treatment process is significantly improved, reducing health risks
8. Lessons Learned and Conclusions to users of the park and reducing negative environmental aspects
such as smell and the presence of vectors of waterborne diseases.
Many questions and constraints arise after implementing this project. Concerns remain about the presence of insects, which should be
The following points describe some reflections and the main lessons further investigated.
learned during and after the process: • Residents living close to the park have stated that they are aware
of the potential health risk connected with the use of polluted
• The project is located in a dynamic peri-urban area characterised water for irrigation and as a result they recognise the benefits of
by different social and environmental conflicts, changing conditions the treatment park. The residents also acknowledged that the
and uncertainties. These factors were a challenge during the design landscape quality has improved considerably.
and implementation process. • The majority of survey respondents stated that the main problem
• The irregular flow of water, characterised by an excess of water was the lack of good management and operation in the park. The
flow during the rainy season and scarcity and water use restrictions residents pay taxes to the municipality, which also include the
during the dry season, was a challenge for the constructed wetland maintenance of the green areas and public space. Therefore future
design, testing and automation. For that the automatic operation conflicts can arise if local authorities do not take action to find

38 39
 common solutions for green area maintenance. Better coordination References
among neighbours and municipal authorities is therefore needed.
• Since the project ended with the park inauguration, further Akut Perú. 2014. Manual del tratamiento de aguas de canal en humedal artificial WTL-
ROTARIA para el uso en riego del parque en La Florida – Chuquitanta (in Spanish).
scientific and social investigation is required to fully evaluate the
park’s performance, social acceptance, constraints, challenges, and Economist Intelligence Unit. 2010. Latin American Green City Index 2010: Assessing
benefits. A strong involvement of different actors, including local the environmental performance of Latin America’s major cities. Munich, Germany:
academia, is key for the creation and sharing of knowledge and Siemens AG. Accessed February 2, 2016. https://www.siemens.com/entry/cc/features/
greencityindex_international/all/en/pdf/report_latam_en.pdf.
providing comprehensive monitoring.
• Despite these conditions, the “Wastewater Treatment Park – Eisenberg, Bernd, Eva Nemcova, Rossana Poblet, and Antje Stokman. 2014. Lima
Children’s Park”, is a lively place for children, women and men living Ecological Infrastructure Strategy: Integrated urban planning strategies and design tools
for water-scarce cities (in Spanish). Stuttgart, Germany: Institute of Landscape Planning
in La Florida II and the surrounding areas. It would be necessary to
and Ecology. http://issuu.com/ilpe/docs/leis__-_esp_20141117_copy.
investigate how to increase the treatment of polluted water for the
irrigation of more green areas. Fernández-Maldonado, Ana Maria. 2008. “Expanding networks for the urban poor: Water
• The project represents the end of four years of research and a and telecommunications services in Lima, Peru.” Geoforum 39(6):1884–1896.
participative planning and design process with solutions and García Rospigliosi A. 2015. Sostenibilidad de un humedal artificial de flujo vertical, para
proposals for the more sustainable use of water resources in Lima el tratamiento de aguas contaminadas con fines de reúso. Avances del trabajo de tesis
and specifically in the Lower Chillon River Watershed, involving para título de Ingeniero Agrícola (in Spanish).
communities, metropolitan and local authorities, Peruvian and
Kosow, H., C. León, and M. Schütze. 2013. Escenarios para el futuro – Lima y Callao 2040.
German academia, and researchers. As result of this experience, Escenarios CIB, storylines & simulación LiWatool (in Spanish). Accessed September 30,
the LEIS Book was published as guidance for the application of 2013. http://www.lima-water.de/documents/scenariobrochure.pdf.
WSUD on different scales, and the pilot project was built as a
LiWa Project. http://www.lima-water.de/.
catalyst to show possibilities for the implementation of WSUD in
different urban conditions, reusing different local water resources, Zapater-Pereyra, M., Eva Nemcova, and Rossana Poblet. 2014. “Ecological Infrastructure:
such as insufficiently treated wastewater, black water, grey water, or Coupling wastewater treatment and open space design – Lima, Peru.” In IWA Specialist
contaminated surface water. The project was possible thanks to the Group on Wetland Systems for Water Pollution Control Newsletter No. 45, 30.
community from La Florida II which has shown the power to co-lead
the process and support the park design, construction, maintenance, Note: The description of the project is based on the publication Lima Ecological
and operation. In addition, the German Ministry of Education and Infrastructure Strategy (Eisenberg at al. 2014).
Research (BMBF), the San Martin de Porres Municipality, and the
community La Florida II co-financed the project with the aim of
benefiting the community by gaining a new green space, which can
support the reduction of socio-environmental conflicts in the area.

40 41
CASE 3
Wastewater Challenges and the Successful
Implementation of Constructed Wetlands in Egypt
(Egypt)

T. T. El-Gamal and M. H. Housian1

Abstract

With the gradual increase of water demand and the limitation of water
supply, the feasible solution to meet water requirements in Egypt is
through the reuse of different agricultural, municipal and industrial
wastes. The Egyptian irrigation system is considered a closed system,
where different water losses return to the drainage system, as well as a
mixed system. This led to an increase in pollution in the drainage water,
and it makes its reuse a serious problem. Providing sewage service and
water treatment were among the main priorities of the government
in recent decades. However, due to the economic challenges, the
service did not catch up with rapid population growth. Therefore, it is
important to find alternative solutions to mitigate the pollution problem
that are economically and technically feasible. Constructed wetlands
constitute a promising technique to face the problem. The technique
was applied in Egypt on a large scale in northern lakes and on a small
scale in some secondary drains (in-stream wetland). The pilot projects
showed very promising removal efficiency for different pollution
elements. In-stream wetland does not require additional areas, and
as a simple and cheap technique, it could be applied in parallel at

1
El-Gamal, T. T (1)  • Housian, M. H (2)
(1) Associate Professor, Water Management Research Institute, National Water Research
Center, Egypt; e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
(2) Researcher, Water Management Research Institute, National Water Research Center,
Egypt; e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

43
different sites, by incorporating non-governmental organisations, with It is essential to investigate different alternatives in order to develop
a suitable dissemination and capacity programme, which could result a solution that is feasible technically and economically and could be
in considerable progress in improving water quality, and help to save applied in a short time that fits with the rapid increase in population
the use of wastewater. and the rapid change in living standards.
Keywords: wastewater, reuse, pollution, economic challenges, Many alternatives were investigated to help face the current water
constructed wetlands quality problem in Egypt. The wetlands technique is a promising
technique in that regard. The low cost that falls to around one tenth
of the regular treatment plants and the good results that were shown
in some trials make such a technique one of the possible solutions to
1. Introduction the water quality problem. The technique was already investigated in
small spots, and the current challenge now is to investigate the ability
As a semi-arid region, Egypt suffers from water shortages, and the gap to disseminate the concept and to incorporate non-governmental
between water supply and water demand increases gradually with the organisations in constructing and maintaining these sites.
rapid increase of the population. The ability to increase actual water
resources from the River Nile became very limited and therefore the
feasible solution to filling this gap is through dependence on the reuse
of agricultural drains water and municipal wastewater. The majority of
the cultivated area depends on gravity irrigation, which is normally 2. Wastewater Reuse in Egypt
associated with low water use efficiency. All agricultural water losses
return to the system and they are mixed with sewage and industrial
wastes, which return to the system as well. With the increase in municipal 2.1. Current Water Balance in Egypt and the Importance of Reuse
and industrial waste and the need to reuse such losses, water pollution
became a serious problem. Figure 1 shows the water balance in Egypt in 2010 based on the
The concept of reusing wastewater in Egypt dates back to the 1930s. Egyptian water strategy for 2017 (August 2013). Total water resources
However, intensive dependence began in the 1970s. Since this time, were about 59.35 BCM, which mainly includes the share of the River
there was a gradual increase in dependence on drainage water due to Nile as well as small contributions from deep groundwater, precipitation
the rise in water demand. At the same time, there was an increase in and desalination. The Egyptian share of the River Nile has been
contamination of drainage and shallow aquifers with the rapid increase constant since the treaty of 1959, while the population has increased
in population and the rapid change in living standards. around three times during the same period. The per capita share of
The limitation of economic resources affects the ability of the water resources decreased significantly from a water surplus of 2,526
country to collect all municipal waste and treat it. More than 88% of m3/capita/year in 1947 to a sufficient level of 1,972 m3/capita/year in
rural areas do not have sewage services yet. They collect their sewage 1970, and then water poverty with 663 m3/capita/year in 2013.
at sewage wells beneath the houses, which leak to the shallow aquifer. From Figure 1, water use in 2010 was 75.46 BCM (127% of water
When these tanks are full, farmers dump the waste in the drainage or resources) with the effect of reusing water losses. This water use is
irrigation system through portable tanks. At many treatment plants in distributed between the three consumption categories (agricultural,
the cities, sewage effluent exceeded the capacities of these plants, and municipal and industry), and 34.8 BCM returns to the system. Final
part of such effluent passes directly into different watercourses. The losses are 18.7 BCM, including 2.8 BCM that are evaporated and 15.9
industrial waste is also dumped with primary treatment in many sites, BCM from the drainage water that are dumped to the sea, and the rest
and the capacity to improve all of this waste is economically difficult. is reused.

44 45
 2.2. The Side Effects of Reuse

Although reuse has a positive effect on increasing irrigation efficiency,

many side effects have to be addressed. Salt accumulation is one
problem, and salt balance is a crucial topic to be studied in Egypt. The
salinity of the drainage water is increasing as can be observed from
Figure 2, but the values were not critical yet. The important issue is the
increase in biological contamination in different watercourses. With the
rapid change in living standards, sewage effluent increased gradually,
either from treatment plants, where the flow exceeded the capacity of
these plants, or in rural areas, where the sewage is dumped directly
Figure 1: Water balance in Egypt in 2010 based on the Egyptian water strategy for 2017
into watercourses.
The reuse has a positive effect on overall irrigation efficiency.
Based on the previous Figure, and considering that total agricultural
2.2.1. Pollution Sources (Point vs. Non-Point Pollution Source)
water consumption was 35.6 BCM, reuse increased overall efficiency
from 57% to 74%. Other references estimated that overall irrigation
Normally, drainage water has different agricultural, municipal, and
efficiency increased from below 50% to 82% with the effect of reuse (R.
industrial waste. As a considerable portion of municipal and industrial
J. Oosterbaan 1999).
waste is not treated, pollution increases gradually in this drainage water.
The dependence on water losses increased gradually during recent
Industrial waste reaches the drains at specific points (point source).
decades as stated before. Figure 2 presents the gradual increase in the
Sewage is mixed with the drainage water either from point source
dependence on the drainage reuse in the last decades (Alam 2001).
(outlets of treatment plants) or through dumping sewage effluent into
Alam (2001) stated that the unofficial use of drainage water by farmers is
the drains from portable tanks as the majority of rural areas are not
about 3.0 BCM/year and is rising rapidly with the increase in water crises.
provided with sewage services yet. Figure 3 presents two examples for
point and non-point pollution source in the Sabal drain in the Middle
Delta. The figure on the right presents the outlet of a treatment station
that dumps its wastes into the drain. The figure on the left presents
portable tanks dumping raw sewage into the drain.

Figure 2: The dependence on drainage water reuse in Egypt during recent decades Figure 3: Dumping wastewater into waterways in Egyptian rural areas

46 47
 Freshwater is contaminated when the drainage water is mixed with is the death of fish in the branch. This happened many times and the
freshwater in the canals, and in a few cases sewage is dumped directly last was in January 2016. On January 21, 2016, the official spokesman
in the freshwater although this is prohibited. for the Ministry of Health and Population stated that the death of the
fish was due to the increase in ammonia in the water, which led to a
lack of dissolved oxygen, and therefore to fish suffocation. He stated
2.2.2. The Contamination of Freshwater by Mixing with Drainage that this was due to the untreated water of the El-Rahawy drain, which
Water is full of chemical and biological contaminants (Youm7 newspaper,
January 21, 2016).
Drainage water is mixed with freshwater in Egypt in two ways. Some Figure 4 presents the Rosetta branch at the point where the Sabal
drains dump their water into the Nile River and its branches. In addition, drain, which is full of sewage water, dumps its water into the branch.
drainage water is lifted to the main or secondary canals through The two pictures on the left present the dead fish at the end of the
different lifting points. branch in January 2016.
The Nile course receives about 78 main agricultural drains
discharging municipal, agricultural and industrial wastewater (El-
Sherbini 1998). Normally, these drains have agricultural drainage water.
During recent decades, many treatment stations were established and
they dump their effluent into these drains. The treatment was primary
and with the increase of the discharge beyond the capacities of these
plants, some of the sewage passes without treatment. This led to a
serious deterioration in water quality at these drains. The situation in
the Rosetta branch presents a good example about pollution risks.
The branch receives around 3.0 BCM/day of drainage water that is full
of primary treated or untreated municipal and industrial waste trough Figure 4: Rosetta branch at the junction point with the Sabal drain and dead fish at the end of the branch
five main drains (El-Rahawy, Sabal, El-Tahreer, Zaweit El-Bahr and
Tala drains) and some factories that dump their waste in the branch
(Ezzat et al. 2012). These drains receive domestic water from fifty-five 2.2.3. Direct Dependence on Drainage Water
towns and villages distributed along the branch. Ezzat et al. (2012)
presented the effect of such drainage water on the water quality of Suspending some lifting stations that lift drainage water to the main
the branch. For instance, the effect of El-Rahawy drains was assessed canals had a positive effect on the quality of these canals. However, and
by measuring water quality in Rosetta before and after the junction as the reuse is a part of the water budget in Egypt as explained before,
with the drain. Ammonia (NH3) at the outlet of the El-Rahawy drain this suspension, with the increase in demand, led to direct dependence
was 22.3 mg/l. In the Rosetta branch, the concentration was 3.6 mg/l on drainage water at the tail end of the irrigation network (northern
before the junction with the drains and it increased to 8.35 mg/l after areas). At many sites, the drainage water is highly contaminated. For
the junction with the drain. For Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), the example, there is a high dependence on the El-Gharibya main drain
concentration at the outlet of one of these drains was 120.0 mg/l and regardless of its bad quality. Based on the study by Egyptian and
it raised the BOD values in the branch from 5.0 mg/l before the drain Japanese researchers (Satoh et al. 2016), ammonia in the drain was
to 52.5 mg/l after the drain. Water quality problems in the Rosetta 29.4 mg/l, which is around 59 times the permissible value. The BOD
branch have many serious effects, especially during the winter season value was 31.0 mg/l, or 3.1 times the permissible value. Total coliform
with the decrease in freshwater in the branch, and one of these effects was 1,632,000 CFU/100 ml, which is 326 times the permissible value.

48 49
However, there is a high dependence on this drain, either by lifting the 3.2. The Economic Challenge
water to some canals or from feeding back some canals, or directly by
the farmers. Addressing the pollution was among the main targets of the government
The continuous increase in demand with the expected reduction in of Egypt during recent decades. Based on the Information Memorandum,
water supply could lead to a serious problem in these areas. October 6 Wastewater Treatment Plant Project (2009), the investment
in sewage treatment in Egypt increased from 0.8 billion LE in 1982 to
40.0 billion LE in 2007. During the same period, the total treated water
increased from 1.1 MCM/day to 11.0 MCM/day, or from 25 l/capita/day
to 150 l/capita/day. However, and based on the same reference, the
coverage level for sewage services in 2007 was 60% of cities and 4% of
rural areas. It should be noted that the sanitation service arrived around
10 years after providing rural areas with drinking water. Providing rural
areas with drinking water was associated with a considerable change
in municipal water use and consequently in sewage effluent. Municipal
requirements increased around three times, from 3.1 BCM in 1990 to
Figure 5: Water at the tail end of two branch canals that receive feeding back from the Nashart and
6.57 BCM in 2005 to 8.76 BCM in 2010, and they are estimated to
El-Gharibya main drains reach 11.4 BCM in 2017. In 2010, and from 8.76 BCM, 7.0 BCM return
to the system, and 3.6 BCM from them are untreated. Regardless of
the considerable effort to provide the areas with sanitation services, the
progress is slower than the increase in the population. Abdel Wahaab
3. Challenges and Solutions and Omar (2013), stated, “In spite of continuous government efforts
to extend water services to all urban and rural populations, the service
does not catch up with rapid population growth, and hence service
3.1. The Characteristics of Irrigation and Drainage Networks coverage is worsening.”
Regarding the required cost, it was stated by officials that the cost of
Most of the population of Egypt lives in the valley and the delta of providing sewage services for all villages is almost 100 billion Egyptian
the Nile, which constitutes around 3.5% of Egypt (around 35,000 km2). Pounds. Abdel Wahaab and Omar (2013) stated that the average
More than 4,600 villages and thousands of smaller entities (called cost of treating a cubic meter of sewage in Egypt is almost 5000 LE.
ezba(s)) are scattered around this area. Most of the Egyptian cities are Operation and maintenance (O&M) costs are 15% of the investment
found in this area as well. The area looks like one cultivated land area cost. Riad (2004) stated that the partial treatment of sewage costs the
served by thousands of nested irrigation canals from different levels. government some 600 million Egyptian Pounds. Such large investments
More than 50,000 km(s) of irrigation and drainage canals cover this might not be feasible considering the current economic situation in
area in a very dense system. Most of the rural areas were not provided Egypt. Therefore, cheap and simple techniques should be investigated.
with sewage services, and therefore the sewage in this rural area is
collected and dumped in drainage and irrigation systems. It appears
that farmers have no other feasible solutions unless other interventions 3.1. Solutions to Address Water Quality Problems in Egypt
are developed and disseminated among them.
The direct way, which depends on the collection of sewage and
establishing new treatment plants, is the current official way to face the

50 51
pollution problem in Egypt. Other techniques were tested as research in 1970. Now thousands of wetlands are distributed all over the world.
activities or pilot projects on a small scale. Some of these ideas are In such wetlands the plants, through their roots, stems and leaves, are
presented here. an ideal place to break down the organic matter in the sewage. The
One of these alternatives was to use the polluted water in constructing technique is suitable for small and moderate villages.
artificial forests. A pilot project was conducted to cultivate thirteen El-Torkemany defined the advantages of this technique as low
regions (2,700 hectares) in different Egyptian governorates (Riad 2004). construction and operation costs with efficient removal ratios. In
Two problems are associated with this approach. The first challenge addition, the plants used in the wetland could be used after harvesting
is the characteristics of irrigation and drainage networks in Egypt as to feed livestock. The main disadvantage is the large amount of space
presented before. The dense and nested networks that are surrounded required for this technique compared to traditional treatment plants.
with the cultivated areas make such a technique suitable for specific In Egypt, the technique was used in two ways: the first type was
drains at the border of the Nile Delta. The second challenge is the applied at the farthest end of the drainage network. The wetlands
risk of changing to feeding crops. Low cultural levels with a substantial were constructed in Lake El-Manzala on the northern shore of Egypt,
difference in the return from cultivating different crops could lead to which receives highly polluted water from some main drains. The other
such a change. A clear example about using contaminated water in type (in-stream wetlands) was applied at the beginning of the drainage
cultivating normal crops was found in the El-Saf canal. The canal receives network and was used in small drains. In both types, the results were
bilateral treated wastewater from some treatment plants in addition to very promising.
industrial wastewater. It was planned to use the canal to plant forest For the wetlands in the northern lakes, the project was implemented
trees or some crops that are suitable for the water quality in the canal. by Egypt’s Ministry of Environmental Affairs with a contribution from
Currently, instead of planting forests tree, more than twenty thousand UNDP, and was handed over as a fully operating facility to the Ministry of
acres have been cultivated with traditional crops and vegetables and Water Resources and Irrigation. The treated water was used for irrigation
they use the surface irrigation method. This will probably lead to terrible and agriculture, and a portion was diverted into basins designed for fish
health problems. farming. The total flow to the wetland was 25,000 m3/day. The system
The second alternative was the reuse of agricultural drainage costs just 10 percent of traditional, chemical-intensive wastewater
water from collectors and farm drains before mixing it with polluted treatment systems, and the treatment level was considerably high. The
water in the main drains. The idea was discussed by the Ministry of removal efficiency exceeded 60% of Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD),
Water Resources and Irrigation, but the actual implementation has not 80% of Total Suspended Soil (TSS), 50% of Total Nitrogen (TN), and 99%
yet taken place. Using a ratio of agricultural drainage water before of Faecal Coliform and Total Coliform (Higgins et al 2001).
dumping in the main drains means that contamination in the main drain
will increase and using it will become harmful.
The third technique was the wetlands that were successfully applied 3.5. In-Stream Wetlands
in many regions in Egypt. The technique is very promising and it will be
discussed in more detail. The second type (in-stream wetlands) is discussed in more detail. The
technique is normally applied in small drains at the beginning of the
drainage network. Besides the general benefits of wetlands, in-stream
3.4. Use of Constructed Wetlands as a Solution wetlands have two main advantages:

Based on El-Torkemany (2009), using “Constructed / Engineered • The technique does not require additional areas. This is a general
wetland” dates back to 1905 in Australia, and it was limited until 1950, drawback for wetlands, especially in Egypt as all lands around
when Europeans began to use it in Germany. Americans began using it drainage network are highly valued lands.

52 53
• Working with small sizes gives a chance for the involvement of non- 2,100 hectares. The area suffers from water shortages during the
governmental organisations in operations and maintenance, and summer season, which force farmers to depend on the drainage water.
even in the construction of such wetlands. With good dissemination Therefore, the low quality of the Al-Bahow drain has a serious effect on
and capacity building programmes, isolated villages, through the farmers. The in-stream wetlands in the Faraa Al-Bahow drain are:
any non-governmental organisations in these villages, could take
the lead and work in parallel at different sites, which could have • A sedimentation pond (100*2*1 m);
significant progress in improving water quality. • A wooden gated weir and a steel plants screen that governs a
series of floating (150*3*0.5 m);
Many in-stream wetland experiments were conducted, and some of • Emergent aquatic plants (150*3*0.5 m) reaches;
them are presented here: • A control weir at the drain outlet; the function of the weir is to
Abbel Bary et al. (2003) tested the effect of a natural aquatic treatment control drain water depth and treatment detention time according
system (water hyacinth) in improving agricultural drainage water. They to pollutant loads.
investigated the technique in the Sabal drain, which is one of the main
pollution sources of the Rosetta branch. Natural water hyacinth can The system as presented by the author consists of five components,
reduce BOD by 37%, and TSS by 80%. Treatment efficiency ratios for which are sedimentation, filtration, biodegradation, nutrient plants
ammonia (NH3) and nitrate (NO3) were 14% and 2%. uptake, and pathogen eradication. Sunlight penetration enhances
Abou-Elela et al. (2014) investigated the effect of planted and oxygen content and water disinfection. The vegetation system consists
unplanted constructed wetlands for removing different pollutants. of common reeds (Phragmites Australis) and floating water hyacinth.
According to the authors, planted wetlands proved to be an efficient The results presented by Rashed and Abdel Rasheed (2008)
technology for the removal of both physiochemical and biological illustrated the effect of different parts of the in-stream wetland in
pollutants. The COD, BOD and TSS removal rates reached 88%, 91% removing different pollution elements. TSS was removed mainly
and 92%, respectively. A high-percentage removal of microbiological inside the sedimentation pond where TSS fell from 915 to 114 mg/l.
parameters was achieved in the planted unit compared with the TSS reached 20 mg/l at the drain outlet. BOD decreased from 550 to
unplanted one, which indicates the positive role of plants in bacteria 32 mg/l before wetland cells, and reached 7 mg/l at the drain outlet.
removal from wastewater. The unplanted unit proved to be efficient Pathogens (TC and FC) were perfectly treated along the drain path.
in the removal of COD, BOD and TSS, but it lacked efficiency in the Total coliform was reduced from 4.E+07 TCU/100 ml at the inlet to
removal of pathogens and nutrients. 2.E+06 TCU/100 ml after 800 m and then 7.E+04 TCU/100 ml through
Rashed and Adbel Rasheed (2008) investigated in-stream wetlands in-stream cells and finally reached 5.E+03 at the drain outlet. Faecal
in two small drains: the Faraa Al-Bahow drain in the East Delta, and coliform has similar results to total coliform.
the Edfina drain in the West Delta. The first experiment is presented The treatment efficiencies for TSS, BOD, TC and FC were 97.8%,
in detail as an example of achieving high treatment efficiency using a 98.7%, 99.9%, and 99.9%, which are very promising results.
in-stream wetland.
Based on Rashed and Adbel Rasheed (2008), the Faraa Al-Bahow
drain is a small drain that has a length of 1,710 m and a served area of
533 hectares. Inside the served area, there is a small rural community 4. Conclusion and Future Studies
of 3,000 people, supplied with potable drinking water with small pipe
network collecting raw sewage wastewater and dumping it into the Pollution is a severe problem in Egypt. With the limitation of water
Faraa Al Bahow drain inlet without treatment. The Faraa Al-Bahow resources, the reuse of water losses became the feasible solution
drain empties its water into a higher drain (Al-Bahow) that serves to meet water demand. Such losses contain different agricultural,

54 55
municipal and industrial waste. The treatment level is relatively low, References
and therefore such losses are highly contaminated. The main concern
is the savings in using these available losses. Collecting and treating all Abdel Bary, M. Rafeek, Abdelkawi Khalifa, M. Nour Eldin, Ashraf M. Refaat, Maha M.
Ali, and Zeinab M. El-barbary. 2003. “Wetland as Pollution Control Treatment System
municipal and industrial waste requires high levels of investment, which for Agricultural Drains.” Paper presented at the seventh International Water Technology
are not available considering the current economic situation in Egypt. Conference, Egypt, April 1–3.
It is important to figure out a solution that is feasible technically and
economically. Wetland is a good candidate to face such a problem. The Abdel Wahaab, Rifaat and Mohy El-Din Omar. 2013. Wastewater Reuse in Egypt:
Opportunities and Challenges.
technique was applied on two different scales in Egypt. The bigger scale
was applied in the northern lakes and the smaller scale was applied Abou-Elela, Sohair. I., G. Golinelli, Abdou Saad El-Tabl, and Mohammed S. Hellal.
in some secondary drains (in-stream wetland). In-stream wetland is a 2014. “Treatment of municipal wastewater using horizontal flow constructed wetlands in
Egypt.” Water Science & Technology 69(1):38–47.
promising technique to face water quality problems in Egypt. The pilot
projects that were conducted reported good removal efficiency for Alam, M. N. 2001. Water and agricultural lands in Egypt. Cairo, Egypt.
different pollution elements. In addition, in-stream wetland has some
characteristics that make it more suitable for Egypt. The technique does El-Sherbini, A. M. 1998. “Quality of agricultural wastewater disposed into Rosetta
Branch.” Proceeding of Arab Water 98, Cairo International Conference Center, Cairo,
not require additional surface areas and employs a simple technology. Egypt, April 26–28.
Isolated villages, with the help of any non-governmental organisations
in these villages, could take the lead and work in parallel at different El-Torkemany, A. M. 2009. Constructed Wetlands: Plan, Design and Construction Guide.
sites, with a suitable dissemination and capacity programme. This could http://www.4enveng.com/userfiles/file/CWs%20Plants%20Guid.pdf.

result in substantial progress in improving water quality. Ezzat, Safaa M., Hesham M. Mahdy, H. M., Mervat A. Abo-State, Essam H. Abdel
The key issue therefore is to investigate the ability to incorporate Shakour, and Mostafa A. El-Bahnasawy. 2012. “Water Quality Assessment of River Nile at
non-governmental organisations in establishing and operating such Rosetta Branch: Impact of Drains Discharge.” Middle East Journal of Scientific Research
12(4):413–423.
sites. This should be built on a deep understanding of their situations
and how to build their capacities. Water user associations should Higgins, John. M., D. El-Qousey, A. G. Abul-Azm, and M. Abdelghaffar. 2001. “Lake
be at the forefront of these organisations and operating such sites Manzala Engineered Wetland, Egypt.” Wetlands Engineering & River Restoration
should be among their roles in maintaining different irrigation and Conference, August 27–31, Reno NV. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/40581(2001)49.
drainage properties. The studies should also investigate how to
Ministry of Housing, Utilities and Urban Development/PPP Central Unit. 2009. 6th of
enhance the capacities of these organisations to achieve an efficient October Wastewater Treatment Plant Project, Information Memorandum. http://www.
and sustainable system. pppcentralunit.mof.gov.eg/SiteCollectionDocuments/PPPCUSite/Info%20memo.pdf.

Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation. 2013. Redeveloping the National Plan of
Water Resources – Water Strategy until 2017 (in Arabic), August. Cairo, Egypt: Ministry of
Water Resources and Irrigation.

Oosterbaan, R. J. 1999. “Impacts of the Irrigation Improvement Project on Drainage

Requirements and Water Savings.” Report to the Egyptian-Dutch Advisory Panel on Land
Drainage and Drainage Related Water Management of a short-term consultancy mission.

Rashed, Ahmed and Adel Adbel Rasheed. 2008. “Polluted Drainage Water Natural On-
Stream Remediation.” Paper presented at the 26th Annual Water Treatment Technologies
Conference, Alexandria, Egypt. Volume: 26.

56 57
Riad, Mamdouh. 2004. Innovative Approach to Municipal Wastewater Management:
The Egyptian Experience. Egypt: Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs. http://www.
unep.org/GC/GCSS-VIII/Egypt-sanitation.pdf.
CASE 4
Satoh, M., El-Gamal, T., Taniguchi, T., and Xin, Y. 2016. “Water Management in Nile
Delta.” In Irrigated Agricultural in Egypt, Past, Present and Future, edited by M. Satoh Use of Reservoirs to Improve Irrigation Water
and S Aboulroos.. Springer (forthcoming).
Quality in Lima, Peru (Peru)
Youm7. 2016. http://www.youm7.com/story/2016/1/21/2549336/.

Julio Moscoso Cavallini1

Abstract

Due to the discharge of untreated domestic wastewater into rivers and

the increasing scarcity of water, the use of contaminated water is a
reality that urban and peri-urban farmers in areas close to big cities
have to take into account. This vicious circle is closed by offering these
cities contaminated food that causes serious health problems to the
poorest and therefore most vulnerable population. Efforts to achieve
the Millennium Development Goals of reducing by 50 per cent the
number of people without a supply of safe water and appropriate
sanitation by 2015 could increase the problem described above if the
treatment of wastewater does not go hand in hand with all these efforts.
Meanwhile, there is a need to seek immediate alternatives that reduce
the contamination of water used for irrigating agricultural products
such as vegetables.
Against this background, the International Potato Centre (CIP) Urban
Harvest Programme evaluated the quality of water in the basin of the
river Rímac to quantify impacts on irrigation water, soil and vegetables
and to assess a reservoir-based treatment system to improve the
quality of water and vegetables produced in the area. Studies carried
out between 2005 and 2007 confirmed that irrigation water in this

1
Julio Moscoso Cavallini  ; National Agrarian University-La Molina (UNALM), Lima,
Peru; e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016
Translated from Spanish to English

58 59
important agricultural area is strongly contaminated with parasites and the reservoirs is still good for vegetable cultivation and that farmers
faecal coliforms. The concentration of faecal coliforms is more than are continuing to breed fish to feed their families. Moreover, these
5,000 times higher than the permitted limits for water used to irrigate agricultural products sell at the best prices.
vegetables. As a result, more than 30 per cent of these vegetables are Keywords: pollution, irrigation water, vegetables, quality
not fit for consumption. improvement, reservoirs

1. Background

The rapid increase in the population of Lima, currently home to 9.8 million
people, (National Institute of Statistics and Information Technology,
INEI, 2015) is leading to the unplanned growth of informal settlements
that do not have urban services such as waste management, drinking
water, and sewerage systems. This situation generates the discharge of
large volumes of liquid waste that have a negative impact on surface
water bodies used for agriculture and other purposes and affect the
health of urban residents. Agricultural producers and the consumers of
locally produced food are at a high risk of contracting certain waterborne
diseases. The scarcity of water and the lack of adequate treatment for
domestic wastewater mean that the use of contaminated water is a
common practice in urban and peri-urban areas. Like Lima, other
cities in the world located next to rivers have the same environmental
Figure 1: First reservoir built in east Lima problems of nutrient overload and contamination by pathogens and
toxic chemicals that affect the ecosystem and public health.
The implementation of water treatment systems based on the use Agriculture in the eastern part of Lima produces more than 15 per
of reservoirs made it possible to promote agriculture irrigated with cent of the vegetables consumed by the city. Water from the river Rímac
good quality water, sustaining the production of healthy vegetables is used to irrigate these crops, but it is contaminated by untreated
that do not harm consumers’ health. Storing river water for more than domestic wastewater from settlements, discharged into the lower part
10 days enabled the total removal of human parasites and a reduction of the basin before it is used for irrigation. Informal settlements of
in fecal coliforms down to the levels set by the law on the irrigation of this type are also located around the agricultural area, worsening the
vegetables. Reservoirs also enable greater productivity and profitability pollution of these waters.
for vegetable cultivation, compensating for the use of land and the In 2004, against this background, the Urban Harvest Programme
investment made to install them. The extra earnings from the production conducted by the International Potato Centre (CIP) formed an alliance
of fish improved profits and better justified the investment effort by with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the River Rímac
farmers to build new reservoirs. Users’ Council, the municipality of Lurigancho-Chosica, and farmers
An evaluation conducted in 2013 by the Pan American Health from the area. This alliance had the financial support of the Community
Organization (PAHO) and the General Directorate of Environmental of Madrid-CESAL to: a) evaluate the quality of water in the river Rímac
Health (DIGESA) confirmed that six years later, the quality of water from basin and quantify impacts on irrigation waters, soil and vegetables

60 61
produced in the East Cone of Lima, and b) evaluate an innovative area of east Lima. These SSPs are supported by the identification of
treatment system based on simple reservoirs to improve the quality of risk focuses recommended in a step-by-step process to facilitate
water used in the production of vegetables, using these environments implementation of the WHO Guidelines 2006. Intensive monitoring
for fish farming as an economic option for farmers (Moscoso et al. 2008). of this case was conducted by the Pan American Health Organization
After completion of the project in 2007 there was no further monitoring (PAHO) and the General Directorate of Environmental Health (DIGESA)
for the next six years. Only in 2013 was a new assessment made of the of the Ministry of Health of Peru (PAHO 2014).
water, soil, vegetables and fish of this agricultural area, taking advantage
of testing for the Sanitation Safety Planning Manual (SSP) conducted by
the World Health Organization (WHO) in several countries of the world,
which included as one of its agricultural case studies this agricultural 2. Methodology

The study was conducted in three stages. The first two were in 2007
and comprised the following activities:

• Evaluation of the quality of water in the river Rímac basin and

impacts on irrigation waters, soil and vegetables.
• After construction of the first reservoir, an assessment was made of
water and vegetables irrigated with irrigation channel and reservoir
water and of the fish bred in the reservoir.

The third part was carried out six years later in 2013 and consisted of
an assessment of water quality, some vegetables and the fish farmed in
the reservoirs of the agricultural area.
Agricultural area in
Lima Eastern
2.1. Evaluation of Historical Data about the Water Quality of the
River Rímac

As preliminary work, an evaluation was conducted using historical data

concerning the water of the river Rímac, information mainly based on
the monitoring programme conducted over several consecutive years
by the Lima Potable Water and Sewerage Service (SEDAPAL) and the
General Directorate of Environmental Health (DIGESA) of the Ministry
of Health. The parameters chosen were arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd),
chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) as these are the toxic elements that, due
to bioaccumulation, have the greatest impact on public health. Faecal
coliforms were used as an indicator of faecal contamination, covered in
the World Health Organization Guidelines for the use of wastewater in
Figure 2: Location of the agricultural area in the east of Lima agriculture and aquaculture (WHO 1989).

62 63
2.2. First Evaluation of the Quality of Water, Soil, and Agricultural made of the water requirement for such a plot, bearing in mind that the
Products watering frequency (WF) is every four days in summer and every seven
days in winter.
A detailed study was carried out on the quality of water, soil, and
agricultural products in the agricultural areas of Carapongo, Huachipa
and Nievería. These locations were chosen due to 50, 33 and 28 per 2.4. Evaluation of the Improvement in Water Quality and Crops
cent of occupied areas being dedicated to vegetable growing. through the Use of Reservoirs
Between 2004 and 2005, 45 water samples were taken from
irrigation channels in the agricultural areas of Carapongo, Huachipa During the first four months of operation of the Carapongo reservoir
and Nievería. Sampling points included intakes, main channels, (April to July 2005) the first experiments were conducted on radish
branch channels, side channels and possible contamination points in and lettuce crops in two similar plots of 500 m2 each, one of which
the irrigation system. was irrigated with water straight from the irrigation channel, while the
The parameters chosen to evaluate the quality of vegetables were other had water taken from the reservoir. A subsequent experiment on
As, Cd, Cr, Pb, faecal coliforms and human parasites. Between 2004 a combined crop of beet and radish was conducted between August
and 2006 32 samples of the main vegetable crops were taken: huacatay and November 2005.
(Tagetes minuta L.), lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), radish (Raphanus The safety of water from the channel and from the reservoirs used
sativus L.), turnip (Brassica rapa L. var. rapa), beet (Beta vulgaris L. var. for irrigation was analysed monthly, using the parameters of human
Crassa) and celery (Apium graveolens L.). Sampling was also done of parasites and faecal coliforms. The analyses conducted on harvested
perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) as it has been very widely grown products determined the concentrations of faecal coliforms and human
in these areas in recent years. At harvest time, five or six subsamples parasites detected on them.
were taken to form a composite sample. The vegetables were classified The improvement in agricultural productivity was evaluated by
according to the location of the edible part, i.e.: roots (turnip, radish comparing the incomes and costs for the plots irrigated with channel
and beet) or foliage (lettuce and huacatay). Samples were collected water and those irrigated by reservoir water. The differences in income
before and after washing from beet, huacatay and radish prior to these were attributed to the benefit of the reservoir and a determination
products being put on sale. was made of capacity to pay the debt incurred through building the
Soil samples were obtained from the surface 20 cm in the same place reservoir expressed as the number of cropping seasons required to pay
as where the vegetable samples were taken. Five or six subsamples for the investment.
were also taken to form a composite sample.

2.5. Evaluation of Supplementary Fish Production

2.3. Criteria for the Design of Reservoirs
Fish farming in the reservoirs was proposed in order to compensate for
The experimental reservoir at Carapongo was built to confirm if storing the loss of agricultural land for building the reservoir and to provide
river water for more than 10 days enabled the total removal of human families with an additional source of nutrition to consume or sell. In
parasites and a reduction in faecal coliforms down to the levels set by April 2005, a combined population of 3,000 grey and red Nile tilapia
the Regulation on the irrigation of vegetables. In practical terms, it was alevins were placed in the first reservoir at a density of 20 alevins/m2. In
proposed to use 50 per cent of the volume stored, thus leading to an late November 2005, 1,450 juvenile tilapia were placed in the second
expected theoretical retention time of approximately two weeks. After reservoir. In January 2007, 5,000 tilapia alevins were placed in the third
agreeing with the farmer to water a 2,000 m2 plot, a calculation was reservoir. In the latter two cases fish were placed at 3 fish/m2.

64 65
 • Physical-chemical parameters in soil: pH, organic matter, nitrogen,
phosphorus, potassium, salinity and heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Pb
and Hg)
• Health parameters in soil: thermotolerant coliforms (faecal), human
parasitic nematodes and protozoa
• Chemical parameters in soil: heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Pb and Hg)
• Health parameters in grass and vegetables: thermotolerant
coliforms (faecal), human parasitic nematodes and protozoa
• Health parameters for fish: aerobic mesophiles, Escherichia coli,
Salmonella spp, Staphylococcus aureus and human parasites

Between October and December 2013, 230 water, soil and grass
samples were taken in three assessment areas on three sampling dates:
October 21, November 11 and December 9, 2013. In addition, two
sampling exercises were conducted in January 2014 to evaluate five
types of vegetable and the fish from two reservoirs.
Figure 3: Monthly monitoring of fish weight

The fish were fed on a concentrate for tilapia. The temperature of

the water was recorded daily and the weight of the fish was monitored 3. Results and Discussion
every month to see how much they had grown depending on the
temperature.
3.1. Quality of Water from Irrigation Canals

2.6. Second Evaluation of the Quality of Water, Soil, and Agricultural No water sample exceeded the maximum permitted limits for As, Cd,
Products Cr or Pb set in the regulations for the cultivation of vegetables. This
shows that the water currently used for watering vegetables does not
Support from the World Health Organization for the development of represent a risk of contamination by these metals.
the Sanitation Safety Plan for the agricultural area of Lima East made Nevertheless, the contamination of river water with pathogens
it possible, six years later, to conduct intensive monitoring to check on is the most serious problem for vegetable production. As shown
the quality of water, soil, grass and vegetables irrigated with water from in Figure 4, more than 97 per cent of samples of water taken from
the river and from the reservoirs, as well as the fish bred in them. The the irrigation channels were far above the maximum permitted limit
sampling plan for these items included the following parameters: for faecal coliforms and some samples contained more than 5 million
MPN/100 ml. The river Rímac is one of the main sources of faecal
• Chemical parameters in water: Suspended solids (SS), biochemical contamination, but there is also a contribution from the settlements
oxygen demand (BOD5), N-total, P-phosphates, salinity and heavy around the vegetable-growing areas, which tip their wastewater and
metals (As, Cd, Cr, Pb and Hg) sewage directly into the irrigation channels.
• Health parameters in water: thermotolerant coliforms (faecal), Figure 4 also shows the levels of contamination by human parasitic
human parasitic nematodes and protozoa nematodes and protozoa in the irrigation channels. The Carapongo

66 67
intake receives water with more than 25 parasites per litre, a similar
concentration to that in most of the sampling points evaluated in this
irrigation system. The Nievería intake, on the other hand, receives
parasite-free water, a situation which deteriorates when it receives
drainage waters from Carapongo. In general, contamination levels
reach 25 parasites per litre in Nievería and Huachipa.

Figure 5: Effect of washing vegetables in irrigation channels (Source: Moscoso et al. 2007)

It was also found that leaf crops such as lettuce and huacatay,
and even perennial ryegrass, present higher levels of parasites than
Figure 4: Level of faecal coliforms and parasites in the water of the Lima East irrigation channels root crops such as turnip, radish and beet, as shown in Figure 6. This
(Source: Moscoso et al. 2007)
greater presence of parasites in foliage plants could be attributed to
direct contact with contaminated water, whereas for root crops the
water passes through the soil which, to a certain extent, acts as a filter.
3.2. Quality of Vegetables Irrigated with River Water
Concentrations above 24 parasites/g (nematodes and protozoa) found
in lettuce merit special attention since lettuce is eaten raw.
Chemical analyses indicate that vegetables are grown in areas affected
by arsenic and lead; in spite of high levels of lead in the river basin,
however, the levels found in soil and crops were not high enough to
suppose a risk to health. Analysis of some of the vegetables showed
that there was much greater absorption of cadmium and lead in leafy
(foliage) crops than in root vegetables, but only the huacatay was
above maximum permitted levels. This herb is used in small quantities
to season various Peruvian dishes and for this reason it would not pose
a serious risk to health.
Analysis of lettuce and radish, both of which are eaten raw, showed
that between 17 and 31 per cent of samples were above permitted
limits for faecal coliforms. In addition, the practice of washing products
in irrigation channels increases contamination. Fifty-seven per cent of
good quality vegetables were contaminated during washing (Figure 5).
Actions such as washing vegetables with clean running water could
considerably reduce the contamination of these foods with pathogens. Figure 6: Concentration of parasites by type of crop (Source: Moscoso et al. 2007)

68 69
3.3. Low-Cost Reservoirs to Reduce the Contamination of Vegetables

Given that heavy metals were not a problem in this agricultural area,
the study focused on the need to address the high levels of faecal
bacteria and parasites, mainly from untreated domestic wastewater
discharged into the river. The ideal way to improve the quality of
water for irrigation and washing would be to eliminate the discharge
of untreated domestic wastewater. There are, however, no plans in the
short term to implement such sanitation services in this area.
The construction of small treatment reservoirs was identified as a
viable option to reduce pollutants in irrigation water. Water treatment
in these reservoirs is fairly simple, based on both the time required for
physical processes to act on pathogens and on meeting farmers’ needs Figure 7: Concentration of faecal coliforms in irrigation channel and reservoir water
(Source: Moscoso et al. 2007)
for irrigation and other practices. Water arrives at the reservoir through
the channels and remains there for approximately 10 to 14 days. Retaining
the water for more than 10 days reduces the concentration and viability since a greater percentage of marketable products was achieved than
of pathogenic bacteria, a process that is strongly influenced by solar with those irrigated with river water. This low-cost, simple technology
radiation and temperature variations. Moreover, parasitic nematodes captures nutrients in irrigation water in a biomass of microalgae that
settle on the bottom where they gradually die, leaving the water clean can then be reused to achieve higher vegetable production.
for vegetable irrigation. These reservoirs were also designed for fish The evaluation established that to obtain water of sufficient quality
farming. It was estimated that 50 per cent of the volume would be used to irrigate one cropped hectare, a 700 m3 reservoir is required at a cost
per week, allowing a retention period of 14 days to be achieved with of US$1,360 if it is waterproofed with a soil-cement mixture. Alternative
maximum volume, sufficient to reduce contaminants in irrigation water. coatings are compared in Table 1. If the reservoir is connected to a
Samples of water treated in reservoirs and contaminated river water multi-gate irrigation system, the water requirement can be reduced by
were compared when used for irrigating radish and lettuce. The results 50 per cent.
showed that storing it in reservoirs removed 98 per cent of faecal
coliforms and eliminated virtually all the human parasitic nematodes and Table 1: Options for Waterproofing Reservoirs
protozoa from the irrigation water. Water quality changed from being
well above the maximum permitted limit of 1,000 faecal coliforms per
100 ml for vegetables (water taken directly from the river) to being below Area (m2) US $/m2
these maximum limits when the water was stored in a reservoir (Figure 7). Simple concrete, f’c=140 kg/cm2 232 7.97
Radish and lettuce grown with both sources of water were also
Geo membrane HPDE Thickness 1 mm 232 5.82
evaluated, showing that crops irrigated with reservoir water had up to
Geo membrane HPDE Thickness 1 mm 714 5.82
97 per cent fewer coliforms (between 10 and 100 faecal coliforms per
Geo membrane HPDE Thickness 1 mm 1350 3.76
gram), placing them below the permitted limits, as was the case for
Soil – Cement (2.4 kg /m ) 2
1350 0.49
human parasitic nematodes and protozoa, which were virtually absent
from both radish and lettuce. Soil – Cement (2.4 kg /m2) 1350 0.12

What is more, irrigation with reservoir water seems to have had

a beneficial effect on the growth rate and uniformity of the harvest, Source: Moscoso et al. 2007

70 71
3.4. Fish Production reservoir, with a productivity greater than 0.73 kg/m2. The estimated
cost of alevins and food was US$470, which enabled a sale income of
A disadvantage of using reservoirs is that they occupy potentially US$880.
productive land in these peri-urban areas, where land values are very
high. For this reason, it was proposed that these small reservoirs be
used as aquaculture systems to compensate for the loss of farmland 3.5. Second Evaluation of the Quality of Water, Soil, and Agricultural
and to provide the family with fish as an additional nutritional source Products
to eat or sell.
Results of the water safety analyses are shown in Table 2, with the
addition of Environmental Quality Standards for Natural Waters
(ECAs) issued by the Ministry of the Environment (Supreme Decree
002-2008-MINAM).
The Peruvian Water Quality Standards (ECAs) establish that natural
water used for irrigating vegetables must not have more than 15 mg
of BOD5 per litre (Ministry of the Environment 2008), a value below
those found in the waters of the Carapongo and Nievería reservoirs
used for agricultural irrigation. It is understandable that these waters
have somewhat higher levels of BOD through eutrophication during
the period in which the water is retained, boosted by food remains
and faeces from the farmed fish. This value, therefore, would not be a
technical risk to health and the environment, since the organic matter
present is used as a source of nutrients for the crops irrigated.
On the other hand, all the values determined for cadmium
chromium, lead, arsenic and mercury are below those set by the ECAs,
with the exception of lead in two water samples taken in the Ñaña
and Carapongo irrigation channels, spot values that appear to occur
temporarily and which may in all events indicate occasional mining or
industrial discharges. We consider that, in general, these levels do not
Figure 8: Tilapia harvested in reservoirs currently pose any risk to health or the environment.
Concentrations of faecal coliforms in the waters of the irrigation
Preliminary results were quite satisfactory for the farming of Nile channels remain high, as has been found since 2006, values that in this
tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Tilapia is a tough species that is very 2013 evaluation reach 800,000 NMP/100 ml while the ECAs establish
well accepted by the local population. In subtropical climates such as limits of 1,000 NMP/100 ml for watering short stalk crops such as
that of Lima, the growth rate of Nile tilapia during the warmer months vegetables. Fortunately, the results have also confirmed that the waters
is encouraging and similar to that achieved in tropical climates. Many from the reservoirs built six years ago show acceptable values, between
sexually reversed tilapia with a starting weight of under 2 g can be 7 and 17,000 CF/100 ml, except for one case of 33,000 in the Nievería
bred throughout the year in densities of three fish per m2, reaching reservoir that could be related to the tipping of sewage by inhabitants
a commercially acceptable size of 250 g by the end of the summer. of neighbouring settlements or to retention periods shorter than those
With 450 kg of fish food, 400 kg of tilapia were produced in a 500 m2 recommended.

72 73
 Water in the irrigation channels maintains levels as high as 65
protozoa and five human parasite helminth eggs per litre of water. In
the waters of the reservoirs, however, no helminths were found and
protozoa were down to 20 per litre. It is likely that management of the
reservoir facilitates allowing water to leave by overflowing, in which
case the protozoa will leave the reservoir before dying. For this reason
Table 2: Results of the analysis of the health and environmental quality of water in Lima East agricultural areas

it is important to insist on the recommendation of not taking water from

the reservoir by overflow, as these parasites float in water.
The vegetables evaluated show high levels of faecal coliforms, even
when irrigated with reservoir water which, as shown in Table 2, is of
higher quality, indicating the presence of other sources of contamination
such as sewage from the neighbouring settlements, of which there are
now more than in 2006. Similarly, all the vegetable samples show the
presence of protozoa but not of helminths, indicating that the greatest
risk to health is currently linked to these organisms. Although lettuce
plants irrigated with reservoir water show a lower presence of parasitic
protozoa than those irrigated with water taken straight from the channels,
these crops do not achieve the minimum microbiological requirement
for human consumption. Finally, none of the samples of fish from
any reservoir exceeds the average limit of 500,000 CFU/g of aerobic
mesophilic organisms, in addition to which levels of Staphylococcus
aureus are below 100 CFU/g and there are no Salmonella spp. or human
parasites, as required by the standard (SANIPES 2010).
Unlike the first evaluation, monitoring was able on this occasion to
identify health risks in this agricultural area, and therefore a Sanitation
Safety Plan (SSP) was prepared to control these risks, so that safe
products could be placed on the market.

4. Conclusions and Lessons Learned

4.1. Conclusions

More than 97 per cent of samples of water from irrigation channels

showed levels well above the maximum permitted levels of faecal
coliforms. Between 17 and 31 per cent of samples of lettuce and radish
irrigated with these waters were also above permitted limits.
Source: PAHO 2014

74 75
 The construction of small reservoirs was a viable option to reduce better prices to sell their properties. To motivate farmers to seek the
human parasites, such as protozoa and helminths, on condition that production of healthy vegetables, it will be necessary to support the
water from the channels was stored for about 10-14 days. This stored development of requirements and incentives through environmental
water and untreated river water were compared as sources of irrigation regulations and improved market opportunities. It is hoped to continue
for vegetables, showing that the reservoir eliminates all parasites of working with local stakeholders and decision makers to raise the
human origin from the irrigation water and reduces faecal coliforms to awareness of those responsible for the protection and management of
less than 1,000 CFU/100ml. When radishes and lettuce were irrigated water resources, for the production of safe food and for public health
with reservoir water they had up to 97 per cent fewer faecal coliforms, a with a long-term perspective on sustainable development.
value well within permitted limits, while parasites were virtually absent
from both these vegetables.
What is more, irrigation with reservoir water also had a beneficial
effect on the growth rate and uniformity of the harvest, with a greater
percentage of marketable products than when river water was used.
Since reservoirs occupy parts of productive land, it was proposed References
to compensate for this loss by fish farming, which would also provide
a protein product to consume or sell. With 450 kg of fish food it is INEI. 2015. “Perú: población total al 30 de junio, por grupos quinquenales de edad,
possible to produce 400 kg of Nile tilapia in a 500m2 reservoir, with a según departamento, provincia y distrito” (in Spanish). Lima, Peru: Instituto Nacional
productivity greater than 0.73 kg/m2. The estimated cost was US$470 de Estadística e Informática. http://www.inei.gob.pe/estadisticas/indice-tematico/
poblacion-y-vivienda/.
and sales income was US$880.
Monitoring conducted six years later confirmed that the use of MINAM. 2008. “Environmental quality standards for natural water (ECAs).” Published
reservoirs was still a viable tool to improve the quality of water that by the Ministry of Environment through Supreme Decree 002-2008-MINAM, Lima, Peru.
is contaminated when it comes from the river, for plant irrigation.
Moscoso, J., H. Juarez, and T. Alfaro. 2007. “Uso de reservorios para mejorar la calidad
Nevertheless, there are emerging issues such as human parasitic sanitaria del agua para el riego agrícola en el Cono Este de Lima” (in Spanish). Lima,
protozoa that must be removed, using techniques that need to be Peru: International Potato Centre (CIP)/CESAL, Urban Harvest Programme CESAL.
taught to the farmers.
Moscoso, J., H. Juarez, and T. Alfaro. 2008. “The Use of Reservoirs to Improve the
Quality of Urban Irrigation Water.” Urban Agriculture Magazine No. 20. The Netherlands:
Resource Centre on Urban Agriculture and Food Security Foundation (RUAF).
4.2. Lessons Learned
WHO. 1989. “Guidelines for the Safe Use of Wastewater and Excreta in Agriculture and
Aquaculture.” Geneva: World Health Organization.
The reservoir has proven to be an effective means of increasing income
through the sale of good-quality vegetables and fish that improve human PAHO. 2014. “Plan de Seguridad en Saneamiento para el Estudio de Caso de la Zona
health and conserve the environment. These economic advantages are agrícola del Cono Este de Lima, como parte del Proyecto Prueba del Manual de Planes
attractive to other farmers in the area, who have expressed an interest de Seguridad de Saneamiento en Uso de Aguas Residuales en Lima, Perú” (in Spanish).
Lima, Peru: Pan American Health Organization.
in the construction of reservoirs on their land in order to offer better
quality products at a higher price. SANIPES. 2010. “Protocolo de calidad establecido en el Manual de Indicadores y
Changes in land use that are occurring very rapidly in the area, criterios de Seguridad Alimentaria e Higiene para Alimentos y piensos de origen
pesquero y acuícola aprobado el 2010, y que aplican para los productos hidrobiológicos
especially the conversion of agricultural land into built-up areas, are a
crudos (frescos)” (in Spanish). Lima, Peru: National Fish Health Service (Servicio Nacional
key factor that will influence acceptance of the use of reservoirs. Some de Sanidad Pesquera, SANIPES) of the Technological Institute of Production (Instituto
landowners are already conducting subsistence farming, waiting for Tecnológico de la Producción, ITP).

76 77
CASE 5
Water Reuse for Landscape Irrigation and Toilet
Flushing in Brasilia, Brazil (Brazil)

M. R. Felizatto, F. C. Nery, A. S. Rodrigues, and C. M. Silva1

Abstract

The case presents the case of a water reuse project in Brasilia/

Brazil, assessing its operational results and economic outcomes.
The water reuse experiment took place over 11 years (2000–2011)
at the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) of the Sarah Hospital
Rehabilitation Centre (CAGIF) on the shore of Lake Paranoa. The
results achieved by CAGIF effluent concentrations were able to meet
the more stringent standard for water reuse in landscaping irrigation
and toilet flushing according to American and Brazilian guidelines, with
the exception of the TSS variable, with average effluent concentration
of 7 mg/L, 15 mg/L, 8 mg/L, 0.12 mg/L and 5.9 mg/L, for BOD5,
COD, TSS, TP and TN, respectively. Regarding microbiological
variables such as Total Coliforms and Faecal Coliforms, the final
effluent results were always “not detectable”. The economic outcomes
demonstrate the feasibility of the project over a period of 20 years.
Keywords: water reuse, WWTP operating results, WWTP financial &
economic analysis, Lake Paranoa, applications in Brazil

1
M. R. Felizatto  • F. C. Nery • A. S. Rodrigues • C. M. Silva; CAESB (Environmental
Sanitation Company of Federal District) Brasilia, DF Brazil
e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

79
1. Introduction Currently the two WWTPs treat 90% of the wastewater in the watershed.
The decrease in the phosphorus load to the lake, or rather the removal
Sarah Hospital is a Brazilian reference in locomotor health. Its of it, which is a limiting factor in the eutrophication of lakes, has been
headquarters are located in Brasilia downtown, where there are no a success since the two new WWTPs began operating. The success of
surrounding green areas that would enable the development of the 1990s Paranoa clean-up programme is a confirmation of the socio-
appropriate techniques for the treatment of people with severe physical cultural appreciation of the various recreational possibilities in the lake,
incapacities. In the 1990s the situation worsened due to the significant once considered eutrophic and now heading for the mesotrophic state
increase in the number of patients with spinal cord injuries, caused (Felizatto et al. 2000).
mainly by traffic accidents. CAGIF WWTP was built in a place with no sewer pipe, due to the
As a solution, around 2000 CAGIF (Support Centre for the Great proposal of the Environmental Sanitary Company of Brasilia (CAESB).
Physically Incapacitated) was implemented outside the central area of The idea was to implement Zero Effluent, which would treat all the
Brasilia. The building site, with an approximate area of 80,000 square wastewater. The recovered water would be used for landscape irrigation
meters, is located on the shore of Lake Paranoa, providing exceptional and toilet flushing.
conditions for the implementation of this project. The facilities are near This case presents the integrated design of wastewater management,
the lake, which provides conditions for water sports and others therapy, treatment and water reuse utilised in the CAGIF, located in Brasilia,
methods that have been successful in the treatment of incapacitated Federal District, Brazil.
patients. The new facility operates separately from the headquarters, In order to do that, it provides a detailed description of WWTP´s
not requiring the same specialised technical services for diagnosis and operational performance and the quality of the effluent produced,
treatment, such as operating rooms, X-rays or laboratories, which will comparing these results with Brazilian and US standards for water reuse.
remain centralised at the Sarah-Brasilia Hospital (Lima, 1996). The case also analyses the project from an economic and financial point
Lake Paranoa was created artificially in 1959 in order to increase of view, estimating the unitary costs of: construction and operation &
moisture in the dry climate of Brazilian Central Plateau, to contribute maintenance (US$/m3) and economic equivalence through following
to leisure activities, and to produce electricity. Over the years it has tools: Benefit-Cost Ratio (B/C), Payback, Net Present Worth (NPW), and
become a postcard for the federal capital. In the 1960s two wastewater Internal Rate of Return (IRR).
treatment plants were built, North and South WWTPs (Wastewater
Treatment Plants), treating the wastewater flow of a population
equivalent to 225,000 inhabitants, while using the conventional
activated sludge process (CAS). Accelerated urban occupation of the 2. Materials and Methods
watershed and the inadequate treatment of wastewater contributed
to the development of an eutrophication process in Lake Paranoa
(Felizatto et al. 2000). In the 1980s a large proportion of algae showed 2.1. CAGIF WWTP
that the lake was out of control, and the trophic state of the lake was
considered eutrophic (CEPIS 1990). The process adopted by CAGIF WWTP is advanced wastewater
An investment of three hundred million dollars was made to restore treatment (WPCF 1989; Asano et al. 2007) combining a biological
water quality, with the construction of two new advanced WWTPs process with unit operations to produce an effluent useful for landscape
for biological nutrient removal (Randall et al. 1992; van Haandel and irrigation (green areas) and toilet flushing.
Marais 1999; WRC 1984). The new South Brasilia WWTP has been in The treatment plant was designed and built to operate for a population
operation since 1993 and the new North Brasilia WWTP since 1994, of 1,250 inhabitants – an average daily flow of 250 m3/day. The unit is
with a wastewater treatment capacity equal to 1,000,000 inhabitants. compact, built underground with reinforced concrete. Figure  1 shows

80 81
the WWTP’s flowsheet. CAGIF’s WWTP is configured with the following The collected samples were affluent, biological effluent (overflow
units: (i) Biological Process Tertiary – a variation of CAS with the process from Sedimentation Tanks) and final effluent, and were collected as
for biological nitrogen and phosphorus removal reactor configured as a follows: once a week, sampled every two hours during a 24-hour period.
PHOREDOX process or Modified BARDENPHO® (WRC 1984; Randall The chemical and microbiological variables monitored were: (i)
et al. 1992); (ii) two Sedimentation Tanks with sludge return (underflow) Total Alkalinity; (ii) Anionic Surfactant; (iii) Organic Matter: Biochemical
for an Anaerobic Tank; (iii) Disinfection Tank - sodium hypochlorite Oxygen Demand (BOD5), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) and Total
solution; (iv) Coagulation with an aluminium sulphate solution; (v) Suspended Solids (TSS); (iv) Microbiology: Total Coliforms (TC) and
Filtration - Sand Pressure Filter - operation in upflow and backwash by Faecal Coliforms (FC) and (v) Nutrients: Nitrogen Ammonia (NH4+),
fluidisation; (vi) Adsorption – Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) Pressure Total Kjedähl Nitrogen (TKN), Nitrified Nitrogen (NOx), Total Phosphorus
Filter - operation in downflow and backwash by fluidisation, and (vii) (TP) and Orthophosphate (PO4-2). Parasites (helminth eggs) were not
Second Disinfection (in pipe). The Sludge Age was effected by removal monitored in the operation of the WWTP. All analyses were done by a
of thickened sludge from secondary clarifiers (underflow) to the Aerobic laboratory hired by CAGIF.
Sludge Digester (Ae.S.D.) at regular intervals, and after 15 days of As reported by Libânio et al. (2007), PRODES is a programme
digestion the sludge is transported to the Brasilia North WWTP, where it implemented by ANA in 2001 which applies a performance-based
is dewatered and the biosolids produced are finally disposed of. certification process in order to stimulate WWTP construction and its
adequate operation. Data periodically demanded by PRODES include
treated wastewater flowrates, influent organic loads and the removal
efficiencies of key parameters (BOD, TSS, TN or TP and FC). In Brazil
this programme is also known as the “treated wastewater purchase
programme”. It classifies WWTPs in nine categories (“A” through “I”),
“A” being the less complex ones, listed in alphabetical order according
to the plant’s increase in complexity and its ability to remove organic
matter, nutrients and coliforms (FC). Currently in Brazil it is very common
to use the PRODES/ANA as a reference for WWTP performance
and it classifies them in a scale of “A” to “I”, “I” being the highest
performance. The case aimed to classify CAGIF WWTP by PRODES/
ANA through the removal of values achieved by the treatment plant.

Figure 1: CAGIF WWTP Flowsheet (Felizatto 2001)

Legend: An1…Anaerobic Tank 1; Ax1…Anoxic Tank 1; Ax2…Anoxic Tank 2; Ae1…Aerobic Tank;
Ae2…Aerobic Tank; S.T…Sedimentation Tank; D.T….Disinfection Tank, M.S…Manual Screen;
2.2. Water Reuse Standards
Ae.S.D…Aerobic Sludge Digester.
USEPA (2004) includes the following water reuse main types: (i) Urban,
If the effluent is discharged into Lake Paranoa the concentrations (ii) Industrial, (iii) Agricultural, (iv) Environmental and recreational, (v)
of the treated effluent must not exceed the following values: (i) TSS = Groundwater recharge and (vi) Augmentation of potable supplies.
10.0 mg/l; (ii) BOD5 = 10.0 mg/l; (iii) TKN = 4.0 mg/l; (iv) TP= 0.3 mg/l Urban reuse systems provide reclaimed water for various non-
(v) Total Faecal Coliforms with removal of 99 to 100%, according to the potable purposes including: (i) Irrigation of public parks and recreation
recommendation of the CAESB. The quality of the final effluent was centres, athletic fields, school yards and playing fields, highway medians
always based on the reference values recommended by CAESB, even and shoulders, and landscaped areas surrounding public buildings
without discharging the effluent into Lake Paranoa (Zero Effluent). and facilities; (ii) Irrigation of landscaped areas surrounding single-

82 83
family and multi-family residences, general wash down, and other a period during this experiment in which up to one third of the city’s
maintenance activities; (iii) Irrigation of landscaped areas surrounding supply consisted of reclaimed water. It is currently operating at 26%,
commercial, office, and industrial developments; (iv) Irrigation of golf and may reach a maximum of 35% (Lahnsteiner and Lempert 2007; du
courses; (v) Commercial uses such as vehicle washing facilities, laundry Pisani 2005).
facilities, window washing, and mixing water for pesticides, herbicides, California has a long history of reusing and recovering wastewater.
and liquid fertilizers; (vi) Ornamental landscape uses and decorative Its first regulation is from 1918. During all these years, there have been
water features, such as fountains, reflecting pools, and waterfalls; (vii) changes and the current guideline is shown in Table 1 (USEPA 2004;
Dust control and concrete production for construction projects; (viii) USEPA 2012).
Fire protection through reclaimed water fire hydrants, and (ix) Toilet
and urinal flushing in commercial and industrial buildings (USEPA 2004). Table 1: California Treatment and Quality Criteria for Water Reuse
In addition, reuse systems can supply major water-using industries or
industrial complexes as well as a combination of residential, industrial,
and commercial properties through “dual distribution systems”. Type of Use Total Coli- Treatment Required
In “dual distribution systems”, the reclaimed water is delivered to form Limits
(MPN/100 mℓ)
customers through a parallel network of distribution mains separate
from the community’s potable water distribution system. The reclaimed
Fodder, Fibre, and Seed - Primary
water distribution system becomes a third water utility, in addition to Crops Surface Irrigation of
wastewater and potable water. Reclaimed water systems are operated, Orchards and Vineyards
maintained, and managed in a manner similar to the potable water
system (USEPA 2004). CAGIF has a “dual distribution system”, Pasture for Milking Animals 23 Oxidation and
Landscape Impoundments Disinfection
especially for the use of water for toilet flushing, adding a separation Landscape Irrigation (Golf
mechanism of the two networks through a “cross-connection” device. Courses, Cemeteries, etc.)
The development of planned water reuse projects in the United
States began in the early twentieth century. California State was a Surface Irrigation of Food 2.2 Oxidation and
Crops Restricted Recreational Disinfection
pioneer in regulating recovery and water reuse. Its first enactment was
Impoundments
in 1918. The first reuse systems were developed to provide water for
irrigation in the states of Arizona and California in the late 1920s. In Spray Irrigation of Food 2.2 Oxidation, Coagu-
1940 water reuse began as well as the use of chlorinated wastewater in Crops Landscape Irrigation lation, Clarification,
steel mills. From 1960 onwards, urban public reuse systems have been (Parks, Playgrounds, etc.) Filtrationa, and Disin-
Toilet and Urinol Flushing fection
developed in Colorado and Florida (Asano and Levine 1996).
In 1965, Israel’s Ministry of Health issued regulations allowing the
reuse of secondary effluent for irrigation of vegetable crops, excluding Legend: a The turbidity of filtered effluent cannot exceed an average of 2 turbidity units during
vegetables that are eaten raw. any 24 hour period.
In 1968, extensive research was conducted into direct potable
reuse, which resulted in the implementation of the first and only Water In Florida the “Reuse of Reclaimed Water and Land Applications”
Reclamation Plant located in Windhoek, Namibia: the Goreangab was adopted in 1989 and revised in 1990 by the Florida Department
Water Reclamation Plant. This is the first case of direct potable reuse of Environmental Regulation. The standard of quality and treatment,
where the recovered water is used successfully for the drinking water including proposed revisions to the non-potable use of reclaimed
supply of this municipality (Lahnsteiner and Lempert 2007). There was water, are shown in Table 2 (USEPA 2004; USEPA 2012)

84 85
Table 2: Florida Treatment and Quality Criteria for Water Reuse Table 3: USEPA Treatment and Quality Criteria for Water Reuse

Type of Use Water Quality Treatment Type of Use Water Quality Treatment
Requirements Required Requirements Required

Restricted Public 200 Faecal Coli MPN/100 mL Secondary Urban Reuse pH = 6 – 9 Secondary
Access Areas a 20 mg/L TSS Disinfection All types of landscape irrigati-
20 mg/L BOD5 on, (e.g., golf courses, parks, ≤ 10 mg/L BOD5 Filtration
cemeteries)
Public Access Areas b No detectable Faecal Coli Secondary Vehicle Washing ≤ 2 NTU Disinfection
Food Crop Irrigation c MPN/100 mL Disinfection Toilet Flushing
Toilet Flushing d 5 mg/L TSS and Use in fire protection systems No detectable Faecal
Fire Protection 20 mg/L BOD5 Filtration and commercial air conditi- Coli MPN/100 mL
Aesthetic Purposes oners
Dust Control Other uses with similar access 1 mg/L Cl2 residual
or exposure to the water (minimum)

Rapid Rate Land 200 faecal coli MPN/l00 mL Secondary

Application 20 mg/L TSS Disinfection
20 mg/L BOD5
12 mg/L Total N
likely to be risky for the public and therefore require a higher treatment
level. These reference values are from the National Water Agency (ANA
Legend: 2005) and the Brazilian Association of Technical Standards (ABNT 1997).
a
Sod farms, forests, fodder crops, pasture land, or similar areas.
b
Residential lawns, golf courses, cemeteries, parks, landscaped areas, highway medians, or
similar areas.
c
Only allowed if crops peeled, skinned, cooked, or thermally processed before consumption.
d
Wot allowed where residents have access to plumbing system. Table 4: Brazilian Quality Criteria for Unrestricted Urban Non-Potable
Water Reuse
USEPA, in partnership with USAID, published guidelines for water
reuse in 1992, in order to serve as a guide for its various regional offices
Variable ANA (2005) ABNT(1997)
in some American cities and in states where there are no regulations
yet. The USEPA set of instructions for the recovery and reuse of water
BOD5 (mg/ℓ) ≤ 10,0 -
covers various types of non-potable urban uses: industrial, agricultural
and indirect potable reuse for groundwater recharge. It also raised the
TSS (mg/ℓ) ≤ 5,0 -
number of sources of surface water supplies. The USEPA criteria are
shown in summary in Table 3 (USEPA 2004; USEPA 2012). It is important
Turbidity (NTU) ≤ 2,0 < 5,0
to mention that the microbiological indicator refers to Faecal Coliform
and not to Total. Furthermore, there are no questions concerning virus Faecal Coliforms (MPN/100mℓ) No detectable < 200
control, just like the state of California.
No regulations have been implemented in the Brazil to date. Cl2 residual (mg/ℓ) - 0,5 - 1,5
However, Table 4 reports the values of Brazilian guidelines with regard
to non-potable unrestricted urban reuse, which includes uses that are

86 87
2.3. Economic and Financial Analysis 3. Results and Discussion

The “equivalence capital method” helps with decision-making where

there are multiple alternatives that require a common measure of 3.1. Operating Performance Results
performance. Costs and benefits occur at different points in time
and therefore have different values. Financial analysis methods are The data analysed were the last two years of operation at the CAGIF
tools that will enable us to evaluate the aggregate of these costs and WWTP, 2010-2011, showing levels of removal of about 95% for the
benefits using a common measure, such as follows: Net Present Worth variables representing organic matter (BOD5, COD and TSS), and for
(NPW), Net Future Worth (NFW), Benefit-Cost Ratio (B/C), Equivalent the nutrients, nitrogen and phosphorus, 83% and 93%, respectively. As
Uniform Annual Worth (EUAW), and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) shown in Table 5, it also notes the removal capacity of 6.86 and 7.80
(Ardalan 2000). log units for Faecal Coliforms and Total Coliform, respectively.
Net Present Worth (NPW) is the net difference of the present costs
and benefits. Another method of assessing the viability of a system or Table 5: Performance by Total Removals from CAGIF WWTP (2010-2011)
comparing several systems is to calculate the net present value of the
costs and benefits and obtain the benefit-cost ratio (B/C). If this ratio is
greater than one, the project is profitable (Ardalan 2000). Variable Value (min.) Value (max.) Mean Value
A simple method for obtaining a quick evaluation of the alternatives
is to calculate how long it takes to recover the initial investment. The BOD5 88.51 98.13 95.71
time in any unit that it takes to recover the initial investment is called the
Payback period. In this method, the net cash flow diagram is designed COD 87.64 97.76 95.21
and then, by simple arithmetic calculation, the benefits and the cost
are added year by year until the total equals the initial investment. It TSS 90.00 98.64 95.52
is obvious that the payback period neglects the time value of money.
Moreover, it is only accurate when the interest rate is zero. Even with TP 80.00 98.77 92.61
this shortcoming, many analysts consider this method to be a useful
quick and easy means of comparison (Ardalan 2000). TN 28.36 94.59 83.19
Internal Rate of Return is a useful method for comparing the
financial advantages of alternative systems, using a cash flow TC 6.52 8.45 7.80
diagram. We calculate that specific rate of interest for the system
that makes the net present value equal to zero. This rate is called FC 6.32 7.52 6.86
the internal rate of return (IRR) and is denoted by i*. If this rate
is higher than the minimum rate that satisfies the investor or the
Legend: all removals expressed in %, except “log units” for TC and FC
project manager, then the project is acceptable. This minimum rate
is called the Minimum Acceptable Rate of Return (MARR). There is
no mathematical formulae for calculating MARR. This has to be done After interpreting the data shown in Table 5, CAGIF WWTP can
by trial and error. Fortunately, there are computer programmes that then be classified as “I”, the maximum level for a Brazilian WWTP plant
easily make this calculation. Most of the spreadsheets on the market, configured as an advanced secondary treatment process followed by
such as Quattro Pro, Excel, etc., have provisions for calculating the nutrient removal (phosphorus or nitrogen) and with disinfection at a
IRR (Ardalan 2000). minimum of 5 log units for the removal of faecal coliforms, with total

88 89
removal rates of: BOD and TSS - 90%; TP - 85% or TKN - 80%. When the
plant is ranked as “I” just one nutrient should be considered: TP or Total
Kjedhäl Nitrogen (TKN). This category is commonly called Biological
Nutrient Removal Plant (BNRP). The present study also included a COD
total removal goal of 90%, the same value used for BOD5 evaluation.
By analysing the standard values of effluent concentrations listed in
Tables 2, 3, 4 and 5, it is evident that Brazilian standards of ANA are the most
restrictive of the variables monitored: BOD5, TSS and Faecal Coliforms. The
standard values proposed by ANA (2005) are part of the state of Florida
compound with USEPA, always using the most restrictive values.
The results of the concentrations of monitored variables are shown
in Table 6 for the final effluent from the WWTP CAGIF. Table 6 shows
that BOD values are nearly always lower than what is recommended
Figure 2: Box and Whisker plot of monitored final effluent variables: BOD 5, COD, TSS and TN.
by the ANA (2005): 10 mg/L. While the variable TSS does not meet Legend: The letter “E” before the abbreviations of variables means that the data relate to the
the recommended value (≤ 5 mg/L). Figure 2 shows the data of the final effluent.

concentrations of BOD5, COD, TSS and TN for the final effluent through
the Box and Whisker plot, also known as the Box plot. The Box and Whisker plot in Figure 3 shows data for the total
phosphorus concentration (TP expressed in mg/L) of WWTP CAGIF´s final
Table 6: Concentration of Final Effluent from CAGIF WWTP (2010-2011) effluent. It is observed in Figure 3 that almost all values are below 0.3 mg/L,
the reference value recommended by CAESB if the effluent is discharged
straight into Lake Paranoa. In 11 years of continuous operation the final
Variable Value (min.) Value (max.) Mean Value effluent was never discharged into Lake Paranoa; all reclaimed water has
always been reused in CAGIF for landscape irrigation and/or toilet flushing.
BOD5 3 12 7

COD 7 26 15

TSS 4 12 8

TP 0.05 0.32 0.12

TN 2.2 21.8 5.9

TKN 1.40 21.60 5.22

TC - - Absence

FC - - Absence

Figure 3: Box and Whisker plot for TP final effluent

Legend: The letter “E” before the abbreviations of variables means that the data relate to the
Legend: all concentrations expressed in mg/L, except TC and FC (MPN/100mL) final effluent.

90 91
3.2. Economic and Financial Analysis Results Table 7: Construction Cost of CAGIF WWTP a
(Base year 2004 – S$1.00=R$2.65)
Fernandes et al. (2006) reports the implementation costs and operating
and maintenance costs for the CAGIF WWTP, showing also the economic
and financial viability through the following tools: B/C ratio, Payback Construction Stage Cost (US$)
period, NPW and IRR. The base year used for calculations was 2004.
The entire study was done using the Brazilian currency, the “Real” - R$. Civil Construction (earth-moving, masonry works, iron 113,585.00
In this work the values in Brazilian currency were converted into US frame windows, shapes and waterproofing)

dollars, using as a conversion factor that was the average for 2004, i.e.
US$ 1.00 to R$ 2.65. Equipment (blowers, centrifugal pumps, metering 68,679.00
pumps, submersible pumps, sand pressure filter and
The water balance for 2004 is illustrated in Figure 4, where observed. activated carbon – GAC - pressure filter)
When the recovered water is reused for landscaping irrigation and
toilet flushing, recycling is approximately 42%, which corresponds only Hydraulic network 7,924.00
to reuse in toilet flushing (Fernandes et al. 2006). When the reclaimed (pipes, registers/valves, connections, etc.)
water is not reused in toilet flushing a new amount of water is supplied
as potable water from CAESB, and in this situation the invoice result Architectural Design and Engineering, Supervision and 6,038.00
is the cost of drinking water consumption added to a wastewater cost technical responsibility
of 100%, meaning that the expense with water is always double the
value of potable water consumption. The treated average flow in the Overall 196,226.00
analysed period was 102 m3/d corresponding to 41% of the design flow
(250 m3/d). a 
From: Fernandes et al. (2006)

Table 8 describes the components of the operating costs of CAGIF

WWTP for the year 2004, resulting in values of 73.4% and 26.6%, as
fixed and variable costs, respectively. The resulting volumetric unitary
cost of O&M is US$ 2.00/m3, four to six times higher than the reported
values for large WWTPs in the CAESB (2016) – US$ 0.30 to 0.50/m3.
Figure 4: Block diagram of CAGIF´s water balance with water reuse in landscape irrigation and The high volumetric unitary cost is due to the scaling factor, and
toilet flushing - base year 2004 (Fernandes et al. 2006) usually small WWTPs tend to operate with higher unit costs than larger
ones. In addition, the unit cost is also influenced by the low capacity
Table 7 indicates the estimated values of CAGIF WWTP’s utilisation (41%) of the treatment plant and also because of the high
construction, resulting in a unitary cost of US$ 157/inhab. or US$ 785/ fixed cost (73.4%).
(m3/d). The unitary cost per capita is more than US$ 91/inhab., being The project’s economic viabilities were calculated with a MARR of
the highest value of a unit cost per capita of the 189 Brazilian WWTPs 10% and a period of 20 years, and the results are shown in Table 6. The
built over the years 2000-2001 (Nunes et al. 2005). CAGIF Water Reuse project can be considered viable in accordance
with the methods used and the values shown in Table 9.

92 93
Table 8: Operation and Maintenance (O&M) Cost of CAGIF WWTPa 4. Conclusion
(Base year 2004 – US$1.00=R$2.65)
According to the analysis of the performance data for the CAGIF WWTP,
it can be concluded that:
DESCRIPTION COSTS (US$)

• The treatment plant is considered the most advanced process

Yearly Monthly %
according to the Brazilian reference (PRODES/ANA). Organic matter
1. Labor 59.7 removal is over 90% (BOD5, COD and TSS), total phosphorus up to
1.1 Operator 31,000.00 2,583.33 (41.4) 85%, TKN above 80%, and 5 logarithmic units for removing faecal
1.2 Engineer Supervisor 13,735.00 1,144.58 (18.3) coliforms;
2. Commodity (electricity) 5,790.00 482.50 7.7 • The quality of the final effluent did not meet TSS requirements,
compared to the strictest guidelines for water reuse for landscape
3. Material 4.9 irrigation and toilet flushing. The data analysed by the study
3.1 Aluminum Sulfate 168.00 14.00 (0.2)
demonstrate that the biological removal of nutrients, coupled
3.2 Sodium hypochlorite 1,860.00 155.00 (2.5)
3.3 Filter media 1,620.00 135.00 (2.5) with coagulation, filtration and disinfection for wastewater
treatment, cannot produce effluent with SST less than 5 mg/L.
4. Service 20.0 Nowadays it is common to use membrane separation processes
4.1 Laboratory analysis 10,236.00 853.00 (13.7)
4.2 Sludge Transport 3,168.00 264.00 (4.2) (MSP) in Water Reclamation Plants to improve performance and
4.3 Dewatering 1,584.00 132.00 (2.1) produce recovered water with low values of TSS concentrations
and turbidity. Ultrafiltration is the most used membrane separation
5. Maintenance 7.7
5.1 Civil service 3,204.00 267.00 (4.3)
process today; and
5.2 Equipment 2,532.00 211.00 (3.4) • The economic outcomes showed that WWTP was expensive to
build, operate and maintain due to lower design flow and low
Overall 74,897.00 6,241.42 100
capacity utilisation. However, the water reuse project CAGIF
demonstrated economic and financial viability through the
a 
From: Fernandes et al. (2006) methods used in this study.

Table 9: Results of Economic and Financial Analysis for Water Reuse in

CAGIF Brasilia (Brazil). Period analysed: 20 years
Acknowledgments
Methods Value To CAESB, for always encouraging their technicians to conduct
B/C 3.27 advanced studies in wastewater treatment, and to CAGIF/Sarah
Hospital, for providing the opportunity and directly participating in its
Payback 3 years and 4 months
water reuse project for 11 consecutive years. Special thanks for eleven
NPW US$ 445,483.00 years of harmonious conviviality to the operators of CAGIF’s WWTP:
IRR 30% Gilberto Oliveira Souza, Wagner Paulo de Lima, Wilson Jorge Junior
and Wilson Pereira.

94 95
References Lima, J.F. 1996. “Centro de Apoio ao Grande Incapacitado Físico – Ante Projeto” (in
Portuguese). Associação das Pioneiras Sociais (APS).
Associação Brasileira De Normas Técnicas (ABNT). 1997. “NBR 13969: Projeto,
Construção e Operação de Unidades de Tratamento Complementar e Disposição Final Nunes, C. M., Libânio, P. A. C., Ayrimoraes, S. R. 2005. “Custos Unitários de Implantação
dos Efluentes de Tanques Sépticos: procedimentos” (in Portuguese). de Estações de Tratamento de Esgotos a partir da base de dados do Programa de
Despoluição de Bacias Hidrográficas – PRODES” (in Portuguese). 23º Congresso
Agência Nacional De Águas (ANA). 2005. “Conservação e Reúso da Água em Edificações” Brasileiro de Engenharia Sanitária e Ambiental, Anais, Campo Grande, Brazil.
(in Portuguese). Brazil: Prol Editora Gráfica.
du Pisani, P.L. 2005. “Direct Reclamation of Potable Water at Windhoek’s Goreangab
Ardalan, A. 2000. “Economic & Financial Analysis for Engineering & Project Management.” Reclamation Plant.” In Integrated Concepts in Water Recycling, edited by S.J. Khan, A.I.
Technomic Publication. Schäfer, M.H. Muston.

Asano, Takashi and Audrey D. Levine. 1996. “Wastewater Reclamation, Recycling Randall, Clifford W., James L. Barnard, and H. David Stensel. 1992. “Design and Retrofit
and Reuse: Past, Present and Future.” Water Science & Technology 33:10–11. of Wastewater Treatment Plants for Biological Nutrient Removal.” In Water Quality
doi:10.1016/0273-1223(96)00401-5. Management Library Volume 5. Technomic Publication.

Asano, Takashi, Franklin Burton, Harold L. Leverenz, Ryujiro Tsuchihashi, and George U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 2004. “Guidelines for Water Reuse.”
Tchobanoglous. 2007. Water Reuse: Issues, Technologies, and Applications. New York: Washington D.C.: Municipal Support Division Office of Wastewater Management Office
McGraw-Hill. of Water.

CAESB. “Intranet CAESB - Custos Operacionais da ETEs da POE” (in Portuguese), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 2012. “Guidelines for Water Reuse.”
Accessed January 27, 2016. http://www.caesb.gov.br. Washington D.C.: Municipal Support Division Office of Wastewater Management Office
of Water.
CEPIS. 1990. “Metodologias Simplificadas para la evaluacion de Eutroficacion en Lagos
Calidos Tropicales” (in Spanish). Regional Programme CEPIS/HPE/OPS. van Haandel, and A. e Marais, G. 1999. “O Comportamento do Sistema de Lodo Ativado
- Teoria e Aplicações para Projetos e Operação” (in Portuguese). Campina Grande, Brazil:
Felizatto, M.R., Itonaga, L.C.H., Gobatto Cavalcanti, C. and Teixeira Pinto, M.A. 2000. Publisher of the Federal University of Paraíba.
“Statistical tendency analysis of Lake Paranoa limnological data (1992-1999) and its
trophic state classification based on CEPIS methodology.” Proceedings of SIDISA 2000: WPCF. 1989. “Water Reuse – Manual of Practice” (Second Edition). Alexandria, VA: Water
International Symposium on Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Trento, Italy. Pollution Control Federation.

Felizatto, M.R. 2001. “ETE CAGIF: Projeto Integrado de Tratamento Avançado e Reúso WRC. 1984. “Theory, design and operation of nutrient removal activated sludge
Direto de Águas Residuárias” (in Portuguese). 21o Congresso Brasileiro de Engenharia processes.” Pretoria, South Africa: Water Research Commission.
Sanitária e Ambiental, Anais, João Pessoa, Brazil.

Fernandes, G. T., Felizatto, M. R., and Souza, M. A. A. 2006. “Análise Econômica de

Projeto Integrado de Tratamento e Reúso de Água – O caso da ETE CINR (Brasília-DF)”
(in Portuguese). VIII Simpósio Ítalo Brasileiro de Engenharia Sanitária e Ambiental, Anais.

Lahnsteiner, J. and Lempert, G. 2007. “Water management in Windhoek, Namibia.”

Water Science & Technology 55:1–2.

Libânio, P.A.C., Nunes, C.M., de Oliveira, E.F.C.C., Soares, S.R.A., Brito, M.C.S.O.M.
2007. “Implantação e Operação de Estações de Tratamento de Esgotos; Experiências no
Âmbito do Programa Despoluição de Bacias Hidrográficas (PRODES)” (in Portuguese).
24º Congresso Brasileiro de Engenharia Sanitária e Ambiental, Anais, Belo Horizonte,
Brazil.

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 SECTION II:
HEALTH &
ENVIRONMENTAL
ASPECTS
CASE 6
Good Irrigation Practices in the Wastewater
Irrigated Area of Ouardanine, Tunisia (Tunisia)

Olfa Mahjoub 1, Mohamed Mekada 2, and Najet Gharbi 3

Abstract

The reuse of treated wastewater (TWW) for irrigation in the Ouardanine

area dates back to the 1990s. In the early 2000s, farmers have claimed
for the installation of a filtration device at the treatment plant outlet to
remove suspended solids. Later, the government constructed a storage
basin and installed a battery of filters upstream of the irrigated area.
In open fields, the surface irrigation of fruit trees was replaced by drip
irrigation to decrease water consumption, on the one hand, and to
reduce contact between practitioners, soil, and fruits with TWW, on
the other hand. Restricted irrigation is fully respected by growing only
crops that are allowed by the regulation, such as fodders and fruit trees.
In order to benefit from the nutrients available in TWW, a nursery was
established for the production of various kinds of plants that represent
a valuable economic benefit. Despite the substantial progress, farmers
are unable to value the nutrient load brought by TWW yet. As for the
health aspects, vaccination is assured regularly neither by the public
health services nor by farmers themselves; the latter state that they
have mastered the situation with no accidental contamination reported.

1
Olfa Mahjoub  ; National Research Institute for Rural Engineering, Water, and
Forestry (INRGREF), Tunisia; e-mail: [email protected]
2
Mohamed Mekada; Agricultural Development Group (GDA) Ouardanine, Tunisia
3
Najet Gharbi; Department of Rural Engineering and Water Use; Ministry of
Agriculture, Water Resources, and Fishery (DG/GREE), Tunisia
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

101
The cessation of irrigation before harvesting is difficult to respect since of good practices to protect the health of practitioners such as farmers
peach fruits are highly demanding of water in the late growing season. and workers in the field. To date, no official guidelines for good
Consequently, an appropriate post-harvest handling of fruits is assured practices have been published.
to protect consumers. The role of the extension services is also sought In Tunisia, the effluents of 26 out of the 110 existing wastewater
to be more efficient. treatment plants (WWTP) are used for the irrigation of agricultural lands.
Keywords: Good irrigation practices, biosolids, filtration, crop About 28 irrigated schemes exist currently and only 17 are actually in
restriction operation. The average rate of intensification is around 46% for the last
10 years (DGGREE 2014). Hence, few irrigated areas are attempting
to fulfil the requirements for safe reuse in agriculture. One of the most
thriving irrigated areas is located in the Ouardanine region where the
1. Introduction landscape has been transformed over 18 years thanks to the reuse of
TWW. TWW in Ouardanine has been identified as the only alternative
Conventional water resources are becoming increasingly scarce. water resource in the region, constraining the population in adjusting to
Climate change and pollution caused by anthropogenic activities the prevailing conditions to guarantee their food security. The area of
have considerably reduced the available quantity of water. Under Ouardanine is considered a success story in terms of wastewater reuse
such circumstances, arid and semi-arid countries have to rely on non- in Tunisia. Nevertheless, very few or no publications have introduced the
conventional water resources as a potential source to irrigate crops. case study to the large research and development (R&D) communities
Wastewater is regarded worldwide as an alternative resource. Handling to showcase the successes and opportunities of improvements.
of this resource remains delicate and prone to failure. It requires the The general objective of this case is to highlight the good practices
application of specific practices, especially when treatment is lacking behind the success of reusing TWW in agriculture in the irrigated
or is inefficient in reducing the load of pollution to an acceptable level area of Ouardanine. The focus will be on the case study of a farmer
that guarantees safe reuse. cultivating peaches for more than 15 years. Lessons learned and
Farm-based measures can play an important role in reducing the risks potential improvements will be highlighted as well. This case is based
related to wastewater reuse, especially in countries where treatment on a literature review and an interview with a farmer (President of the
is rather decentralised or with low efficiency. The participation of the Agricultural Development Group) and stakeholders, in addition to field
public in the reuse of treated wastewater (TWW) with end-users is observations.
regarded as a good practice because it may help to provide better
service (Keraita et al. 2010). Other aspects can also be features of good
practices such as the role played by institutions and the enforcement of
regulations, when they exist. 2. General Context and Background
Tunisia initiated the experience of reusing TWW for the irrigation
of citrus orchards in La Soukra, in the north-east of the country in early The district of Ouardanine is located 130 km from the capital, Tunis. It
1960s. In the 1980s, research outcomes have shown the likelihood is in the Governorate of Monastir, in the eastern central part of Tunisia
of contaminating soils and crops after the reuse of TWW. National (Figure 1). The region is a semi-arid climate and therefore experiences a
regulations calling for restrictive reuse were established in 1989 inspired water deficit estimated at 1,000 mm/y. The Sahline-Ouardadine aquifer
by both World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Agriculture underneath the region is saline (4.3 g/L) and overexploited (110%)
Organization (FAO) guidelines. Chemical and biological contaminants (CNEA 2008), and it is therefore no longer used for irrigation. Besides,
were limited to guarantee safe reuse (Guardiola-Claramonte et al. 2012). water from the Nebhana dam used exclusively for the irrigation of
The specifications set by the law in 1995 required the implementation farmland in central Tunisia is not available for the region of Ouardanine.

102 103
 Agricultural activity in the region is based on dry farming. Ninety- 3. The Wastewater Treatment Plant of Ouardanine
seven per cent of orchards contained olive trees irrigated using the
system of meskat, the traditional rainwater harvesting system. The reuse The WWTP Ouardanine was built in 1993. It collected the effluents of
of wastewater is deemed to be the only alternative water resource to 17,000 citizens and has a capacity of treatment of 1,000 m3/d (Figures
support intensive irrigated agriculture (Vally Puddu 2003), especially in 2 and 3). It operates with an oxidation pond treatment system. The
the region of Ouardanine. WWTP treats 882 m3/d in summer with a maximum capacity of 1,010
m3/d (DGGREE 2015). Currently, the population of Ouardanine
counts 21,814 inhabitants corresponding to about 6,312 households
(National Institute of Statistics 2015), which explains its forthcoming
rehabilitation in the year 2016.

Figure 1: Location of Tunisia, Monastir governorate, and district of Ouardanine

From an environmental standpoint, Ouardanine has long

experienced the impacts of discharging untreated sewage into the Figure 2: WWTP Ouardanine (Google Earth 2015)
Oued Guelta stream, which resulted in the degradation of the rural
area (Hydro-plante, 2002). Under pressing demand from farmers, the
National Sanitation Utility (ONAS), as the producer of TWW in Tunisia,
started reclaiming effluents in the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) of
Ouardanine. Based on the farmers’ request, the Ministry of Agriculture
and Water Resources subcontracted a study for planning the irrigation
of 50 ha of agricultural land for a group of 40 farmers (CRDA 2015).
The irrigated area of Ouardanine was established in 1994 and
irrigation started in 1997. Currently, the irrigated area stretches over
about 75 ha. Crops irrigated with secondary effluents consist mainly
of fruit trees comprising about 34 ha of peaches, pomegranates, figs,
apples, and medlars. Forage crops like alfalfa and barley are grown as
well (CRDA 2015).
At the installation time, the area of Ouardanine used to consume
40% of the TWW produced (about 4,000 m3). Now it consumes about
140,000 m3 of water/year (2014-2015). Water management is attributed
to the Agricultural Development Association (GDA) (DGGREE 2015). Figure 3: Secondary clarifier at the WWTP Ouardanine (with permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)

104 105
 The WWTP is located in the area of Oued El Guelta, close to the
irrigated area, which is an advantage in itself. Indeed, one of the identified
barriers to the development of reuse in Tunisia is the remoteness of
agricultural lands from the WWTPs (DGGREE 2014). Wastewater is
chiefly of domestic origin with a few industries (slaughterhouse, perfume
industry, olive mills, car washing stations, etc.) that have caused cases
of failure at the treatment plant, followed by a drop in the quality of the
TWW delivered for irrigation (DGGREE 2015).
The WWTP of Ouardanine produces about 350 m3/d of wet
sewage sludge, which is usually spread on drying beds (Figure 4). The
use of biosolids in agriculture is not allowed officially even though
National Standards were well established in 2002 (NT 106.20 (2002)).
Spreading biosolids on agricultural soils is on-going at a pilot scale.

Figure 5: Discharge of raw and treated effluents and sewage sludge in the Oued El Guelta stream
(with permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)

4. Good Practices for Reuse in Agriculture

The WHO Guidelines published in 2006 were established for health

protection purposes, by offering several measures and concepts
(WHO 2006). In Tunisia, these guidelines have still not been translated
by water managers and extension services into simple and practical
actions to be implemented on the field. WHO Guidelines related to
the reuse of TWW in agriculture consider that good irrigation practices
Figure 4: Sewage sludge on drying beds at the WWTP of Ouardanine (with permission of depend on water quantity, water quality, soil characteristics, crops
O. Mahjoub 2015)
selection, irrigation techniques, leaching, and management practices
(WHO 2006). These aspects will be considered below for describing
The management of biosolids is an important issue for the good practices applied in the irrigated area of Ouardanine.
environment since its usage as a fertiliser for agricultural lands is not
allowed on a large scale yet. Alternatively, the produced volume of
biosolids is released into the Oued El Guelta stream (Figure 5) and the 4.1. Quality of Treated Wastewater
area surrounding the WWTP, thus causing drainage problems. A raise
in the water table level in the years 2002-2004 (Vally Puddu 2003) has Water resource quality defines subsequent uses and inherent risks.
resulted in the complete perishing of fruit trees. Dredging of the stream Considering the types of reuse of TWW applied in developing
is planned during the coming years. countries, it is recommended that the quantity and quality be analysed

106 107
against potential reuse applications and quality requirements (UNEP irrigation. To achieve this, a filtering station and storage basin were
2005) in order to guarantee acceptability by end-users, on the one installed and are described below.
hand, and to mitigate the risks to practitioners and the environment,
on the other hand.
In Tunisia, WWTPs existed before the establishment of the irrigated 4.2. Storage Reservoir
areas. Consequently, the quality of TWW supplied for the irrigation
of crops may or may not satisfy the quality requirement for reuse The installation of a reservoir downstream from the WWTP for collecting
downstream, entailing various risks to end-users and consumers, effluents offers the possibility of storing the water for periods of the year
if it is not well managed. Improving TWW quality after conventional where effluents are not available to meet the crops’ water requirements.
secondary treatment can be achieved through several options known In addition, it has the advantage of being an additional treatment that
as “non-treatment”, generally applied in countries where treatment is is very likely to improve TWW quality by reducing the pathogen load
not available (WHO 2006). (Jiménez et al. 2010).
The WWTP of Ouardanine produces a secondary biologically In Ouardanine, a storage basin with a capacity of 500 m3 was
treated effluent that is allowed to be used exclusively for restricted installed upstream, about 5 m high, to guarantee gravity distribution
irrigation based on the Water Code, related decrees, and the National of TWW to the irrigated area. The low quality of TWW transferred into
Standards. Quality monitoring of the TWW in Ouardanine during the the basin used to result in the settling of sludge and clogging of the
course of the research programme and by regional authorities showed irrigation systems. Basin dredging used to be problematic, resulting in
that salinity is moderate (1.7–1.9 g/L), implying slight to moderate environmental nuisance.
restriction for irrigation (Ayers and Westcot 1985). Chemical and In 2007 a storage basin of 1,000 m3 was constructed by the CRDA
biological parameters are almost all within the Tunisian Standards of with the aim of regulating the amount of TWW distributed to the
Reuse except for an excess in total suspended solids (41.7 mg/L vs irrigated area and of adapting it to crop requirements (Figure 6). This
30 mg/L) and Chemical Oxygen Demand (92 mg O2 /L vs. 90 mg/L) basin was also meant to improve the quality of the TWW by allowing
(Bahri and Mahjoub, 2007; CRDA 2015). However, the COD value that the settlement of suspended solids and the die-off of microorganisms.
considerably exceeded the threshold was measured in 2014 (DGGREE Maintenance and cleaning of the basin and of the pumping station are
2014). Besides, CRDA reported high values of suspended solids (CRDA assured by CRDA workers once a year (CRDA 2015).
2015). Oil mills and slaughterhouses discharging effluents in the sewer
system may also cause troubleshooting of the treatment process and
lower the quality of TWW (presence of feathers, oily substances, etc.).
The concentrations of heavy metals in TWW are below the threshold
values fixed by the National Standards of Reuse (Bahri and Mahjoub,
2007; DGGREE 2015). Some elements may occasionally register high
concentrations, like Chromium (Cr) detected at up to 7.3 mg/L in 2003,
probably caused by discharge by textile industries. High concentrations
of Cr, up to 76 mg/kg dry matter, were found in soils fertilized with
biosolids, compared to values recommended by the EU Commission
(60 mg/kg dry matter) (Berglund and Claesson 2010).
It is clear that the WWTP does not seem to be as efficient as
thought in providing a TWW quality that meets standards and farmers’ Figure 6: Storage basin of 1,000 m3 and maintenance of the pumping station in Ouardanine (with
expectations. TWW needs further improvements to be suitable for permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)

108 109
4.3. Filtration

The filtration of secondary biological effluents is recognised to allow

the removal of residual particulate matter and pathogens, such as
helminth eggs and protozoan cysts (Jiménez 2007). Various types of
filtration can be adopted to remove about 1 log unit of pathogenic
bacteria and viruses.
In Ouardanine, effluents at the outlet of the WWTP have always
shown floating suspended solids that escape the settling tank. The
farmers suffered the presence of this material that caused clogging of
the drippers. As a result, some of them have abandoned drip irrigation
or have removed the nozzles. Consequently, the initial pathogen
reduction target was not achieved and water saving was disrupted Figure 7: Net installed at the outlet of the WWTP in Ouardanine in 2003 (left) and the new sieve
and net installed in 2004 (right) (with permission of O. Mahjoub, 2003, 2015)
because of the larger amount of water delivered to plants.
To reduce the load of suspended particles, a net was placed at
the outlet to perform gross filtration (Figure 7). WWTP workers are
charged for the replacement and maintenance of this device. This
system has been installed since 2003. Currently, the net is replaced
by a removable sieve doubled with a metallic net installed in 2004
(Figure 7).
To further improve the quality of TWW, a battery of filters
comprising a granular filter, sand filter, and sieve filter was installed
by CRDA at the outlet of the storage basin (Figure 8). In order to
avoid failure of the filtration system, material used for filtration (sand)
should be changed regularly, every three years. Contamination with
helminth eggs occurred during the course of the growing season in
2015 and has caused the interruption of the irrigation water supply for
25 days, which has significantly affected the irrigation schedule. This
shows that filtration should not be considered a treatment process in Figure 8: Battery of filters at the outlet of the storage basin (with permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)
itself and should be accompanied by an efficient treatment process in
WWTP upstream. In the case of a similar incident, farmers would claim
alternative solutions for the storage of larger volumes in such a way 4.4. Crop Restriction in Reuse
that the yield and quality of the crops are not affected.
The installation of a lower porosity filter, though delivering 50% of Crop restriction is one of the health protection measures to be applied
the initial flow, was suggested by the farmer to reduce the risk of the on farms to reduce the risk of contamination for exposed consumers,
passage of pathogens. The President of the GDA was willing to adapt especially for crops eaten raw (WHO 2006). In Tunisia, the decision of
his irrigation schedule to this new filtration system by setting priorities the Minister of Agriculture in 1994 clearly mentions the crops allowed
based on the type of crops and plants to be irrigated: pomegranate, to be irrigated with TWW. These are mainly fruits trees, cereals, fodders,
seedlings, and young plantations in the nursery. and industrial crops.

110 111
 The crops grown in Ouardanine used to be olive trees exclusively. The
introduction of TWW in the region resulted in a significant modification
of the cropping pattern and socio-economic situation. The crops
cultivated currently are cereals (barley: 2 ha), fodder crops (alfalfa: 1
ha), olive trees (olives: 6 ha of table olives and 15 ha of oil olives),
and fruit trees (34 ha) (CRDA 2015). The latter are mostly peaches and
others fruits such as pomegranate, figs, and apples.
The farmer we interviewed is the President of the GDA. He has a
cultivated area of 6 ha composed of: 1 ha of barley and 1 ha of alfalfa
irrigated by improved furrow irrigation, 2 ha of pomegranate and 2 ha
of peaches (Figure 9). In winter time, only forage is irrigated while in Figure 10: Pelargonium graveolens grown as inter-row crops with pomegranate (with permission
summer the volume of TWW produced seems to be sufficient to irrigate of O. Mahjoub 2015)
the whole area, provided no interruption occurs.
Besides pelargonium plants, cut roses are grown in greenhouses
irrigated using drip irrigation. Roses, olive trees, and other plants are
also produced in nursery (Figures 11 and 12).

Figure 9: Peach trees irrigated in the area of Ouardanine in winter (left) and summer (right) (with
permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)

In Tunisia, the irrigation of industrial crops with TWW is allowed

by regulation. Pelargonium graveolens, more commonly called Figure 11: Cut roses cultivated in greenhouses and irrigated with TWW using drip irrigation (with
geranium, is a shrub grown as an inter-row crop between pomegranate permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)

trees (Figure 10). Pelargonium is grown in the TWW irrigated area

of Ouardanine. This plant is grown for its foliage and flowers, which
are used for distillation and the production of scent. Distillates and
essential oils are also produced for curative and culinary features. To
comply with safe TWW reuse rules, the farmer is using drip irrigation to
avoid contamination of the foliage. He stated that he sells it in bunches
at the local market and praised the high economic value. Yet some
microbiological analysis should be made to assure the innocuousness Figure 12: Plants in the nursery irrigated with TWW (including olives, apples, roses, etc.) (with
of the foliage from bacterial contamination. permission of O. Mahjoub 2015)

112 113
4.5. Irrigation Methods and Scheduling concerns, the use of biosolids in agriculture was interrupted in 1998
by the Ministry of Public Health until the National Standards were
Irrigation methods are regarded as an efficient way to prevent the established in 2002. Since that time, the discharge of biosolids has
chemical and biological contamination of soil, crops and end-users become a challenging environmental issue. The lack of follow-up and/
and a health protection measure. WHO classified irrigation methods as or enforcement for use has resulted in the accumulation of sludge
“non-treatment” options (WHO 2006). in areas surrounding WWTPs. Currently, the application of biosolids
In Ouardanine, an irrigation network installed for the area is 2.3 km on agricultural land is limited to experimental plots conducted as
long. The area is equipped with valves and irrigation equipment. Cereal demonstration pilot projects.
and fodder crops are irrigated with an improved surface method. During The area of Ouardanine has a sandy clay silt, sandy silt clay or
the course of more than 15 years, the interviewed farmer has adopted sandy clay soil. The farmer estimates that soil is poor requiring organic
various irrigation systems, including most recently an integrated amendment for improving its fertility. The high price of manure made
dripper delivering 4L/hr. The farmer thinks it is very important to give of biosolids is a good alternative to organic fertilisers. In Ouardanine,
the appropriate amount of water to trees to guarantee the good quality biosolids have been used as fertiliser since 2009 to rehabilitate the
and yield of peaches. subsoil. An area of 1 ha is currently amended under the regular
Farmers keen to adopt water-saving techniques are encouraged by monitoring of the Ministry of Agriculture as one of the demonstration
the government with incentives. Up to 60% of the investment cost of projects. The use of biosolids is carried out according the National
the irrigation system can by subsidised when switching from traditional Standards. The estimated amount of 6 T/ha is expected to be spread
irrigation techniques like furrow irrigation to more water-saving methods over 5 years.
like sprinklers or drip irrigation. The farmer remains curious about the joint effect of applying TWW
and biosolids in terms of the amount of fertilisers and impacts on soil,
yield and fruit quality.
4.6. Water Allocation

The GDA of Ouardanine is in charge of irrigation water management in

the irrigated area. It also sells the water and maintains the infrastructure 6. Potential Areas of Improvement
for the existing 36 farmers. The distributed amount of water is allocated
according to land size, the number of trees and their age. In the case
of a water shortage, young plantations and nurseries are supplied as a 6.1. Nutrient Recycling/Recovery
priority. Nevertheless, water needs may be exceeded, especially before
the harvesting period, because farmers think that the fruits are more Fertilisers are becoming increasingly expensive, thus entailing high
water demanding (CRDA 2015). production costs. Wastewater reuse has the advantage of providing
a considerable amount of nutrients that were used for a long time in
developing countries worldwide.
In Ouardanine, farmers are irrigating with TWW and delivering
5. Use of Biosolids in Agriculture water doses based only on the crops’ water needs, while ignoring
the fertilizing load. In doing so, they are not benefitting from
Opportunities to use biosolids in agriculture in Tunisia were assessed in nutrients brought by TWW. Usually, phosphorus is present at low
the late 1980s and their use as a fertiliser in agriculture was practiced concentrations, requiring additional mineral fertilization. Whilst
in the 1990s (Bahri and Houmane, 1987; Bahri, 1995). Due to health nitrogen is present at such high concentrations, groundwater may

114 115
be contaminated if TWW is not well managed. To date, farmers in 6.5. Cessation of Irrigation before Harvesting
Ouardanine have neither the clues nor tools to evaluate the amount
of fertilisers present in TWW. Therefore, more guidance is needed The cessation of irrigation can reduce the load of pathogens that may
in this respect. potentially be transferred to the soil and to the irrigated produce by
contributing to the die-off of bacteria and viruses.
According to the Tunisian Standards of Reuse and related
6.2. Monitoring of TWW Quality specifications, farmers should cease irrigation two weeks prior to
harvesting fruits or crops. Based on comments by farmer, the delay
Based on national regulations, regular monitoring of the quality of between irrigation and harvesting can be respected neither for forage
TWW used for irrigation and soil should be performed more frequently nor for peaches. For forage harvested for grazing, it has been shown
to guarantee the safer reuse of TWW. that 99% of viruses can be eliminated after two days of exposure to
sunlight (Feigin et al. 1991) which could prevent the contamination
of animals. For peaches, meanwhile, it is important for the farmer to
6.3. Irrigation Scheduling irrigate intensively during the late period of the growing season for
better fruit quality and yield; therefore irrigation does not seem to be
The farmer may be still overestimate the water needs of crops in stopped. This may entail higher water consumption and health risks.
order to guarantee a good quality and yield. More research has to be Better guidance should be provided to farmers on this aspect.
conducted to optimize the use of TWW in terms of water, fertilisers, and
salt build-up.
6.6. Role of the Extension Service

6.4. Health Protection and Medical Control The extension service does not seem to provide sufficient outreach to
the farmers in the region. Improvements observed in the area are said
Vaccination is preventive measure that mitigates the risk of to be the results of the farmers’ own initiatives. The role of the extension
contamination with pathogens. In Ouardanine, farmers’ comments service should be enhanced for safer irrigation. More trust should be
and records of the growing season in 2014/2015 (DGGREE 2015) established in the relationship between farmers and local stakeholders.
revealed that there is neither health control nor vaccination for
employees of the Regional Department for Agricultural Development
(CRDA Ouardanine) or for farmers at the Farmer’s Association. 6.7. Fruit Commercialisation
Farmers declared that no major incidents due to microbiological
contamination occurred in the past. Fruits produced in Ouardanine are sold at local and regional markets
The health control of farmers is under the responsibility of the with no distinction from fruits irrigated with conventional water. However,
Department of Hygiene, Milieu and Environmental Protection local consumers seem to recognise peaches irrigated with TWW from
(DHMPE) under the Ministry of Public Health, which is in charge of Ouardanine. The reluctance of some consumers towards fruits irrigated
the microbiological quality control of the effluents, including crops. with TWW, expressed as a “yuck factor”, should be resolved by raising
Vaccination was shown not to be regularly performed in the area to awareness and enforcing good practices in the field when harvesting,
prevent potential microbiological pathogen-related diseases. Farmers packaging, etc. Stakeholders speak about establishing a system of
confirmed that no health issues occurred in the area thanks to all the traceability for products to guarantee their safety, on the one hand,
other preventive measures. and to protect the health of customers, on the other hand.

116 117
7. Conclusions and Recommendations References

The area of Ouardanine irrigated with TWW is considered a successful Ayers, R. S. and D. W. Westcot. 1985. “Water Quality for Agriculture.” FAO Irrigation and
case study in Tunisia. The application of good practices for safe reuse Drainage Paper 29:174 Rev. 1, Rome.
in agriculture is behind this achievement. The reuse of TWW in this Bahri, A. and B. Houmane. 1987. “Effet de l’Epandage des Eaux Usées Traitées et des
area has brought a number of benefits to the rural population and Boues Résiduaires sur les Caractéristiques d’un Sol Sableux de Tunisie” (in French).
to the region as a whole at various levels (environmental, economic, Science du Sol 25(4):267–78.
health, etc.). This has limited the discharge of raw wastewater into
Bahri, A. 1995. “Environmental impacts of marginal waters and sewage sludge use in
water bodies and protected natural resources. It was also beneficial Tunisia.” Paper presented at Pan-African Workshop on African Women in Science and
to the development of economic activity that improved the quality of Engineering - A vision for the 21st Century, Lund University, Sweden.
life of the population and contributed to the prosperity of the region.
Bahri, A. and O. Mahjoub. 2007. “Projet PISEAU I. Action de recherche: Utilisation agricole
Applying good practices for TWW reuse in the region of Ouardanine
des boues résiduaires. Elaboration des norms” (in French). Final Report. Institution de la
was an asset. Nevertheless, a number of improvements are sought for Recherche et des Etudes Supérieures Agricoles, Institut National de Recherche en Génie
the development of agricultural activity while taking into account the Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Tunisie.
various impacts of the project.
Berglund, K. and H. Claesson. 2010. “A Risk Assessment of Reusing Wastewater on
The President of the GDA, as a representative of the farmers’ Agricultural Soils - A Case Study on Heavy Metal Contamination of Peach Trees in
community in the region, is looking for more outreach and is Ouardanine, Tunisia.” MSc dissertation, Report No TVVR - 10/5004 . ISSN: 1101-9824.
recommending several actions including but not limited to the following: Lund University, Sweden.

CNEA. 2008. “Etude sur l’Etat de la Désertification pour une Gestion Durable des
• Introduction of a subsurface irrigation system for unrestricted Ressources Naturelles en Tunisie” (in French). Report on the third phase. Last Accessed:
irrigation to evolve toward more permissive regulations and a February 2008, http://www.chm-biodiv.nat.tn/sites/default/files/rapport_desertif.pdf.
larger range of crops.
• Establishment of an agreement between all the stakeholders at the CRDA. 2015. “Experience of the GDA of Ouardanine 2 in the Reuse of treated
Wastewater” (in Arabic).
local level (TWW producer, manager, and end-user) to guarantee
the continuous TWW supply during the irrigation period and DGGREE. 2014. “Evaluation de la Situation de la Réutilisation des Eaux Usées en
prevent any variation that may affect production. Agriculture” (in Arabic). Unpublished report.
• Optimisation of irrigation and fertilization of crops, and development
DGGREE. 2015. “Rapport sur la Situation des Périmètres Irrigués par les Eaux Usées
of indicators for water efficiency, nutrients and water consumption Traitées” (in French). Campagne 2014/2015.
with regard to the quality of TWW, biosolids, and soil.
Guardiola-Claramonte M., T. Sato, R. Choukr-Allah and M. Qadir. 2012. “Wastewater
production, treatment and reuse around the Mediterranean Region: Current status and
main drivers.” In Integrated Water Resources Management in the Mediterranean Region:
Dialogue Towards New Strategy, edited by Redouane Choukr-Allah, Ragab Ragab, and
Rafael Rodriguez-Clemente, 139–174.
8. Acknowledgments
Hydro-plante. 2002. “Etude d’Assainissement et de Recalibrage de l’Oued El Guelta” (in
The authors would like to thank MM. Mahmoud Charfeddine, Moufid French). Dossier d’éxecution, Tunisia.
Zarga, and Nabil Majdoub of CRDA Monastir for their availability,
Jiménez, B. 2007. “Helminth ova control in sludge: A review.” Water Science &
enriching discussions, and support in the realisation of this work.
Technology 56(9): 147–55.

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Jiménez, B., D. Mara, R. Carr and F. Brissaud. 2010. “Wastewater Treatment for Pathogen
Removal and Nutrient Conservation: Suitable Systems for Use in Developing Countries.” CASE 7
In Wastewater Irrigation and Health. Assessing and Mitigating Risk in Low-Income
Countries, edited by P. Drechsel, C. A. Scott, L. Raschid-Sally, M. Redwood and A. Bahri,
149–170. Ottawa, Canada: IWMI and IDCR.
Effects of More Than 100 Years of Irrigation with
Keraita, B., F. Konradsen, and P. Drechsel. 2010. “Farm-Based Measures for Reducing Mexico City’s Wastewater in the Mezquital Valley
Microbiological Health Risks for Consumers from Informal Wastewater-Irrigated
Agriculture.” In Wastewater Irrigation and Health. Assessing and Mitigating Risk in Low-
(Mexico)
Income Countries, edited by P. Drechsel, C. A. Scott, L. Raschid-Sally, M. Redwood and
A. Bahri, 189–208. Ottawa, Canada: IWMI and IDCR. Christina Siebe, María Chapela-Lara, Mario Cayetano-Salazar,
Blanca Prado 1, and Jan Siemens 2
National Institute of Statistics. 2015. “Census of population and housing in 2014, Tunisia.”
http://www.ins.nat.tn/indexen.php (accessed January 15, 2016).

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). 2005. Water and Wastewater Reuse:
An Environmentally Sound Approach for Sustainable Urban Water Management. Osaka,
Japan: UNEP and Global Environment Centre Foundation. Abstract
Vally Puddu, M. 2003. “Diagnostic Technico-économique de la Réutilisation des Eaux
usées Traitées dans le Périmètre de Ouardanine (Monastir-Tunisia)” (in French). Tunisia: The Mezquital Valley is a unique example of wastewater reuse due to
INRGRF. its size (90,000 ha) and temporality (more than 100 years). In this region
many data have been collected by several research groups. The aim of
World Health Organization (WHO). 2006. WHO Guidelines for the Safe Use of Wastewater,
Excreta and Greywater. Volume II: Wastewater in Agriculture. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO-
this case is to summarise the main lessons learned. This Soil-Aquifer-
UNEP-FAO. Treatment system developed as a consequence of the drainage of the
closed basin of Mexico to avoid flooding in Mexico City. It has grown
in response to the increase of the city’s population and wastewater
discharge volumes. Wastewater is a valuable resource in the semi-arid
region north of Mexico City and its reuse enables the production of
mainly fodder crops and maize, thus achieving above average yields.
We investigated the effects of wastewater irrigation by sampling fields
irrigated for different lengths of time, and by repeatedly monitoring
single irrigation events. Results confirm that wastewater irrigation leads
to a groundwater recharge of 25 m3 s-1 (2.16 Mm day -1). Although
average maize productivity has increased from 2 t ha-1 under rain-fed

1
Christina Siebe  • María Chapela-Lara • Mario Cayetano-Salazar • Blanca Prado
Institute of Geology, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
e-mail: [email protected]
2
Jan Siemens; Institute of Soil Science and Soil Conservation, Justus Liebig University
Giessen, Giessen, Germany
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

120 121
agriculture to 10 t ha-1, excess nitrogen is applied to the fields and The main crops are lucerne and maize, but also fodder oats, rape,
leached as nitrate (up to 108 kg ha-1 under maize) or emitted as nitrous ryegrass and some vegetables like zucchini, cauliflower and chili
oxide (up to 0.34 mg N m-2 hour -1 in maize fields). Heavy metals peppers are produced. The achieved mean maize yields of 10 t ha-1 are
accumulate in the first 20 cm of the soil; however their availability above the national averages obtained under rain-fed (2 t ha-1) and well-
to plants is small due to the alkaline pH values and the medium to water irrigated agriculture (8.6 t ha-1) (Conagua 2010).
large soil organic matter contents. Also pharmaceutical compounds
accumulate in the top-soil, and an increase in the presence of antibiotic
resistance genes was observed. Furthermore, an epidemiological
study was conducted in this area in the 1990s, which indicated a larger
prevalence of helminth infections among children in the irrigated area
compared with a nearby area under rain-fed agriculture.
Until 2015, only untreated wastewater was applied to the fields,
but in 2016 a large wastewater treatment plant will start to operate.
We will therefore be able to monitor the changes in wastewater,
soil, and crop quality and to evaluate the treatment performance
and its effects on public health and environmental processes. Our
experimental set-up and the archiving of samples make it possible to
investigate the long-term effects of wastewater irrigation and yields
robust information to derive guidelines for the safe use of wastewater
in agriculture.
Keywords: irrigation, untreated sewage, environmental pollution,
productivity, human health
Figure 1: Location of the
Mezquital Valley, north of Mexico
City, and the three irrigation
districts (ID): ID-003 (Tula), ID-
100 (Alfajayucan) and ID-112
1. Introduction (Ajacuba) in which untreated
wastewater from Mexico City is
used for mean concentrations
The Mezquital Valley, 80 km north of the metropolitan area of Mexico and standard deviations of
distinct heavy metals and
City, is an example of a low-cost Soil-Aquifer-Treatment system, in metalloids (N=9) (after Guédron
which 52 m3 s-1 (4.49 Mm3 day-1) of untreated sewage and surface et al., 2014) and concentration
ranges of pharmaceutical
runoff are collected within the closed basin of Mexico to be used to compounds (N=12) (after
irrigate agricultural land (Figure 1). At the beginning of the 20th century Siemens et al., 2008) measured
in the wastewater discharged
the discharged water was used first to generate electric power at two into the Mezquital Valley are in
UTM 14Q
facilities within the valley. Its use for irrigation was officially permitted
downstream of these facilities in 1912. As the discharge increased
the irrigated land surface also extended, now reaching approximately The sewage is dominantly of domestic origin, has a mean content
90,000 ha and benefitting more than 46,000 people in three irrigation of total suspended solids of 295 mg L-1 and 264 mg L-1, a chemical
districts (ID), namely ID-003 Tula, ID-100 Alfajayucan and ID-112 oxygen demand of 527 and 475 mg L-1 and a biochemical oxygen
Ajacuba (Figure 1) (Conagua 2010). demand of 240 and 180 mg L-1, respectively, in the dry and rainy seasons

122 123
(Jiménez  and  Landa 1998; Jiménez and Chávez 1997). It has large Table 1: Mean concentrations and standard deviations of distinct
concentrations of organic matter (TOC: 35-188 mg L-1), total nitrogen heavy metals and metalloids (N=9) (after Guédron et al. 2014) and
(37-38  mg L-1) and phosphorous (2.7-3 mg L-1), but also contains soluble concentration ranges of pharmaceutical compounds (N=12) (after
salts (mainly NaCl and NaHCO3) and thus has an electric conductivity Siemens et al. 2008) measured in the wastewater discharged into the
of 1.4-1.7  mS cm-1. Of great concern are the large concentrations of Mezquital Valley
faecal coliforms (between 105 to 108 colony forming units, CFU/100 mL),
Streptococcus faecalis (102 to 106 CFU/100 mL), Clostridium perfringens
(103 to 106 CFU/100 mL), somatic bacteriophages (102 to 106 plaque forming
units, PFU/mL), Giardia spp. (450 to 10,000 cysts/L), and helminth eggs (1.8 Element/ Anatomical Therapeutic Concentration in
to 23 helminth eggs/L) (Navarro et al., 2015). Each irrigation event also adds substance Chemical classification wastewater
heavy metals and pharmaceutical compounds in trace concentrations to the group (ATC2) of WHO
soils (Guédron et al. 2014; Gibson et al. 2007; Siemens et al. 2008) (Table 1).
Several investigations have been carried out in this region to analyse Al (mg L-1) - 0.82 ± 0.03
As (mg L-1) - 0.013 ± 0.007
the effects of wastewater irrigation. This case aims to describe the
Cd (mg L-1) - 0.001 ± 0.001
current Soil-Aquifer-Treatment system and to review the main findings
Cr (mg L-1) - 0.015 ± 0.001
of different research groups concerning soil, crop and groundwater Cu (mg L-1) - 0.038 ± 0.002
quality and public health in the area. Special emphasis is given to Mn (mg L-1) - 0.37 ± 0.01
results obtained by sampling fields irrigated for different lengths of time Ni (mg L-1) - 0.019 ± 0.003
over the last century, which makes it possible not only to understand Pb (mg L-1) - 0.14 ± 0.01
the long-term effects of this practice, but also to help predict the Se (mg L-1) - 0.005 ± 0.006
behaviour of distinct soil and crop properties in the future. Additionally, Zn (mg L-1) - 0.80 ± 0.01
the monitoring results of single irrigation events are reported, which THg* (ng L-1) - 363.4 ± 18.1
helps to understand the functioning of the present Soil-Aquifer-
Trimetoprim (µg L-1) antibacterials 0.11 – 0.32
Treatment system and derive recommendations to improve the current
Clarithromycin (µg L-1) for systemic use 0.07 – 0.12
management practices and mitigate environmental damage. Erythromycin (µg L-1) <0.01 – 0.08
At the end of the case the possible impact of a new wastewater
treatment plant is discussed. Metoprolol (µg L-1) beta-blocking agents 0.21 – 3.10

Ibuprofen (µg L-1) M1 anti-inflammatory and 0.22 – 0.54

Naproxen (µg L-1) antirheumatic products; 2.84 – 6.74
Diclofenac (µg L-1) 0.25 – 0.55
2. Description of the Current Soil-Aquifer-Treatment Sulfasalazine (µg L-1) 0.29 – 0.44

System Bezafibrate (µg L-1) C10 serum lipid-reducing 0.03 – 0.10

Gemfibrozil (µg L-1) agents <0.01 – 0.22

The Mezquital Valley has a semi-arid temperate climate, with a mean

annual precipitation of 700 mm in the south and less than 400 mm in
the north. Most of the rain occurs between June and September. Mean
annual evapotranspiration is 1,800 mm. Before the current wastewater *THg: Total particulate mercury

irrigation regime maize was produced under a large risk of drought

124 125
during the rainy season and with mean annual yields of less than 2 t ha-1. Table 2: Mean Characteristics of the Soils in the Mezquital Valley
Wheat, barley and beans were also cropped, but most of the land was
used as extensive grasslands to feed sheep (Melville 1990).
Irrigation of fodder crops is performed by overflow, and maize is Soil type Depth Clay (%) pH Organic CEC
irrigated in furrows. It makes it possible to ensure yields during the (cm) matter  (%) (cmolckg-1)
rainy season, and to grow crops in the dry season. The land use
system is a lucerne-maize rotation, where lucerne is grown for 3 to 5 Leptosol 23 23 7.5 3.8 20 – 32
years and then followed by 2 years alternating between maize in the
Phaeozem 65 32 7.3 3.6 16 – 30
spring-summer cycle and a second crop (such as fodder oats, barley
or ryegrass) in the fall-winter cycle. Eventually maize is substituted by
Vertisol 100 44 7.1 4.4 25 – 45
rape or by vegetables as zucchini, cauliflower or chili peppers. Since
the mean monthly temperature does not fluctuate more than 2ºC over
the year (16 – 18 ºC), lucerne can be cut every 45 days, i.e. 10 times per Source: Siebe 1994a
year yielding on average 100 t ha-1 of fresh biomass per year (25 t ha-1
dry mass; Siebe 1998, Conagua 2010). and chloroform. The total suspended particles are removed and the
The soils in the extended piedmonts and the valley bottom have biochemical oxygen demand reduced by more than 97%. Heavy metals
formed on alluvial and colluvial deposits of the Quaternary age, which like Fe, Mn and Cr are removed at 88%, while Cu, Pb, As and Hg are
cover volcanic tuff deposits of the late Tertiary. Three main soil types removed at 52 to 80%. However, soluble salts, particularly nitrates, have
can be found: Leptosols, Phaeozems and Vertisols (Siebe 1994a). The been found to leach out of the soil and reach the groundwater (1.5 to
Leptosols have a silt loam to loam texture, are limited in depth to less 77 mg L-1 of nitrates; Jiménez and Chávez, 2004). Recently also several
than 25 cm by the volcanic tuff and eventually by a calcium carbonate emerging pollutants have been measured in the wastewater (Table 1)
enriched layer (caliche). The Phaeozems are loamy clay soils of medium and some of them, particularly acidic compounds such as naproxen,
depth (25 to 70 cm) while the Vertisols are generally deeper (100 to ibuprofen, diclofenac and sulfasalazine, were also found in shallow
120 cm) and have a more clay rich texture (Table 2). All these soils groundwater in concentrations ranging between 0.21-2.0, 0.51-0.6,
have a neutral to slightly alkaline pH, medium to large cation exchange 0.04-0.13, and 0.31-0.78 µg L-1, respectively (Siemens et al. 2008).
capacities and medium organic matter contents (Table 2). Particularly The recharged groundwater meets the regional mean for Mexican
the Phaeozems and Vertisols, which cover more than 65% of the valley, water quality criteria, and is used after chlorination to supply water to
have large filter and buffer capacities (Siebe 1994a). more than 700,000 inhabitants in the region. However, total and faecal
The Mezquital Valley has a three level aquifer and the one closest to coliforms, sodium, nitrate, mercury and lead concentrations exceed the
the surface is recharged to more than 90% by the infiltrating wastewater maximum permissible limits at some wells and in particular sampling
according to isotope studies (Payne, 1975). Artificial groundwater periods as reported by several authors, so that membrane filtration
recharge has been estimated at 25 m3 s-1 (2.16 Mm3 day-1) (British should be considered for its potabilisation (Jiménez and Chávez 2004).
Geological Survey 1998).
Jiménez and Chávez (2004) analysed the efficiency of pollutant
removal from the irrigation water by its infiltration through the soil at 2.1. Impacts on Public Health
three different wells. The Soil Aquifer Treatment is particularly efficient
in removing pathogens (>99.9% removal) such as Salmonella spp., In the 1990s the Mexican Institute for Public Health (INSP) in
E. hystolyitica cysts, Shigella spp., helminth ova and faecal coliforms. collaboration with the London School of Tropical Medicine conducted
It also removes 100% of xylene, ethylbenzene, tetrachloroethylene, an epidemiological study in the area to investigate the prevalence of

126 127
gastro-intestinal infections among farmworkers’ families (Blumenthal
et al. 1991-92; Blumenthal et al. 2000; Blumenthal et al. 2001,
Cifuentes 1998). The study considered farmworkers’ households
in communities within the Mezquital Valley that use wastewater for
irrigation and farmworkers’ households in rain-fed agricultural areas
for comparison. Among the impacts on human health, intestinal
helminth infections represented the highest risk from exposure to raw
wastewater. Wastewater irrigation was also associated with a higher risk
of Entamoeba hystolitica infections in children, while the prevalence
of other gastrointestinal infections, such as those produced by Gardia Figure 2: Behaviour of a) pH values and b) soil organic carbon contents in the upper 30 cm of the soil
lamblia, were only partly related to exposure to untreated wastewater, with length under irrigation (Chapela-Lara 2011). Error bars are 2 standard deviations.

with poor hygiene related to poverty conditions in non-irrigated areas

of the region also determining the prevalence of gastro-intestinal dominantly bound to the soil organic matter (Siebe 1994b; Siebe
infections (Cifuentes et al. 1991, Cifuentes et al. 2000, Siebe and and Cifuentes 1995; Chapela-Lara 2011; Guédron et al. 2014). Metal
Cifuentes 1995). contents in soil increase linearly with time (Figure 3).

2.2. Effects on Soil and Crop Quality

As stated before, the soils in the region have a very good sorption
capacity, due to their loamy to clayey texture, their medium to large
organic matter contents and their neutral to slightly alkaline pH values.
The sampling of fields that have been irrigated over different lengths
of time, namely 0, 12, 23, 35, 50, 84 and 99 years, has shown that
wastewater irrigation increases the soil organic matter contents by
more than 60% during the first 30 to 40 years, until a new equilibrium
between increased biomass production and its decomposition is
reached (Figure 2a). The increased organic matter enforces the sorption
capacity of these soils even further, since humified soil organic matter
has the ability to adsorb not only nutrients but also pollutants.
The pH values tend to decrease slightly over time by about 1 pH unit,
although the slope of the adjusted regression model is not significant,
showing the great b uffer capacity of these soils. Nevertheless,
the decrease in pH can be attributed to the protons produced by
the nitrification of the ammonia nitrogen entering the soil with the
Figure 3: Behaviour of total contents of a) Cu, b) Zn, c) Pb and d) Cd in soil with length under
wastewater, as the monitoring of several irrigation events has shown irrigation (Chapela-Lara 2011).
(Hernández et al. 2016). Green horizontal lines indicate heavy metal reference concentrations or periods issued by the
European Union for agricultural soils; the surpassing of these periods requires further studies to
The study of fields irrigated for different time periods also has assess the mobility and plant availability of the contaminants (McGrath et al., 1994). A projection of
revealed that heavy metals accumulate in the top soil, where they are a linear increase in time is also shown (black line, with the dotted lines representing 95% confidence).

128 129
 The soil’s adsorption capacity has been investigated in batch these elements should not surpass in the wastewater, so that their
experiments in the laboratory; it resulted in being very large (Siebe and inputs are balanced with the crop’s up-take, and not accumulating in
Fischer 1996) and increases with irrigation, which is attributable to the the soils over time. As can be observed in Table 3 these concentrations
increase in soil organic matter contents. are by one to two orders of magnitude smaller than those established
In soils irrigated for 100 years, the total contents of Cu, Zn, Pb and in the Mexican guidelines for irrigation water quality (Diario Oficial de
Cd reached the lower threshold values established by European Union la Federación 1997).
legislations for agricultural soils (Figure 3). The analysis of lucerne and
maize grain confirmed that these metals are taken up by the crops in Table 3: Estimated concentrations of heavy metals in wastewater not
small quantities, and that the concentrations increase with the length accumulated in the soil over time and comparison with the maximum
of time under irrigation; however the maximum permissible limits for permissible concentrations according to the Mexican regulation
lucerne are still not reached, namely 0.5, 10, 20 and 50 mg kg-1 dry
weight (DW) for Cd, Pb, Cu and Zn, respectively (WHO 1996) (Figure 4).
Metal Concentration in irriga- Leptosol Maximum permissi-
tion water by soil type: (mg L-1) ble limits in irriga-
Vertisol (mg L-1) tion water (mg L-1)

Cu 0.03 0.021 0.5

Zn 0.075 0.053 20.0

Pb 0.015 0.011 0.6

Source: Diario Oficial de la Federación 1997

The samples from fields irrigated for different lengths of time

were also analysed for their concentrations of several pharmaceutical
compounds, among them antibiotics, as well as for resistance genes
to these antibiotics (Dalkmann et al. 2012). The concentrations of
ciprofloxacin, sulfamethoxazole, and carbamazepine increased during
the first 20 to 30 years. Then concentrations remained more or less
constant at 1.4 µg/kg (ciprofloxacin), 4.3 µg/kg (sulfamethoxazole), and
Figure 4: Heavy metal concentrations in lucerne in fields irrigated with wastewater for different 5.4 µg/kg (carbamazepine), respectively. Diclofenac, naproxen, and
lengths of time (Cayetano-Salazar 2012). VR: data from Vertisol fields; LP: data from Leptosol fields.
bezafibrate did not accumulate in soils. These are acidic compounds
that have a negative charge at the alkaline pH of the soils and therefore
The adjusted regression models give an indication of when these are not retained by the soil.
maximum permissible limits are expected to be surpassed, namely in The resistance genes to flouroquinolones qnrS and qnrB genes were
304 to 406 years for Cd, 515 to 995 years for Cu, 400 to 500 years only found in two of the irrigated soils, while relative concentrations of
for Zn, and more than 14,200 years for Pb. On the other hand, the resistance genes to sulphadiazines, such as sul 1 and sul 2 genes, were
adjusted models can also be used to derive the concentrations that larger in irrigated soils than in non-irrigated soils. Absolute numbers of

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sul genes continued to increase by prolonging irrigation together with 3. Future Challenges
Enterococcus spp. 23S rDNA and total 16S rDNA contents. The increase
in the total concentrations of antibiotics in the soil is not accompanied The most acute problem concerning the current SAT system in the
by an increase in the relative abundance of the investigated resistance Mezquital Valley is related to the increased risk of gastro-intestinal
genes. Nevertheless, wastewater irrigation enlarges the absolute infections. Risk management has been carried out until now mainly
concentration of resistance genes in soils due to a long-term increase through crop restriction, i.e. only fodder crops and large stem grains or
in total microbial biomass. vegetables are allowed and all vegetables that are in direct contact with
the wastewater and the soil, and particularly those that are consumed
raw, are prohibited. The risk of soil degradation through the accumulation
2.3. Impacts of the Large Nitrogen Inputs to the System of soluble salts is impeded by over-irrigation, which leaches salts out of
the root zone and provides the above mentioned groundwater recharge.
Wastewater irrigation provides excess nitrogen to the crops. Mean In order to tackle the hygiene constraints that result from irrigating
annual N inputs to lucerne are 527 kg N ha-1, and those of maize are with untreated wastewater, and to fulfil the requirements already
326 kg N ha-1 (Siebe 1998). Lucerne is a crop that does not depend established since the 1990s in Mexican regulations, a large wastewater
on soil N sources, since it grows in symbiosis with bacteria which are treatment plant is currently under construction, which should start
capable of fixing atmospheric N. Maize is often fertilized with urea operating in 2016 (Conagua 2011). It will treat 23 m3 s-1 (1.99 Mm3 day- 1)
or ammonium sulphate by which an additional 120 to 180  kg ha-1 of urban wastewater from the MAMC by an aerobic biological activated
are supplied to the crop. We have investigated the fate of the large sludge system; during the rainy season it will additionally have
amounts of N entering this agroecosystem by monitoring single the capacity to treat 12 m3 s-1 (1.04 Mm3 day-1) of surface run-off by
irrigation events (Hernández et al. 2016, González-Méndez et al. advanced physic-chemical treatment. The investment costs are 751.1
2015) and calculating water and N balances. We have found that each million US dollars, 49% of which is provided by the federal government
irrigation adds up to 3.5 pore volumes of water to the soil, i.e. 2.5 and 51% by private investors, and the estimated operation costs are
times more water than the soil can retain. The surplus water drains 85.3 million dollars per year (equivalent to 0.12 USD/m3 of biologically
shortly after irrigation into the subsoil and 5% of the irrigation reaches treated wastewater and 0.07 USD/m3 of physic-chemically treated
the aquifer. Within the soil there are preferential water flow paths, waste water). These costs will be charged to consumers in the MAMC
which transport solutes fast into deeper layers. Nitrogen enters the through their potable water bills.
fields in the form of either ammonium (56%) or organic N (44%); part of Among the expected benefits are reduced health risks, particularly
the ammonium is temporarily adsorbed to clay minerals, but another of helminth infections, and an important reduction of organic matter
part is readily transformed into nitrate, and leached into deeper soil and suspended particle contents, while most of the soluble N and P is
layers and into the unsaturated zone beyond the roots. Some of the expected to be maintained in the effluents so it can be recycled through
nitrogen is denitrified and emitted as either N2O or probably even as irrigation. Chlorination of the effluent is supposed to minimise health
N2 into the atmosphere. González-Méndez et al. (2015) report mean risks further. This will presumably also allow cultivating vegetables
N2O emissions of 0.06 and 0.34 mg N m-2 hour-1 from wastewater that are consumed raw. Since the latter achieve much higher market
irrigated lucerne and maize fields, respectively. Also CO2 emissions prices, the income of farmers is also expected to rise. The reduction
are increased in wastewater irrigated soils when compared with rain- of suspended particles in the wastewater will also permit the use of
fed soils (77.5 vs 16.6 mg C m-2 h-1) due to enhanced microbial activity drip irrigation, which significantly improves the efficiency of water use.
in the irrigated soils (González-Méndez et al. 2015). Nitrogen inputs should also correspond to crop needs in this land use
system. Optimised water use efficiency and smaller N loads should,
therefore, also avoid nitrate leaching and N2O emissions.

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However, it is important to note that, in the medium term, this are taken up by crops in small amounts. The study of soils irrigated
system will no longer contribute to the artificial aquifer recharge. In for different lengths of time indicates that in the long term the current
the future, other water sources of potable water for the inhabitants SAT system is not sustainable. Epidemiological investigations have
of the valley have to be explored. Also, important measures need also shown that farmers and their families living within the wastewater
to be undertaken to prevent soil salinisation, since the water irrigation districts are at greater risk of suffering from gastro-intestinal
treatment will most probably increase soluble salt concentrations. infections, particularly by those pathogens that survive in the
Special care should be taken to maintain the soil organic matter environment in form of cysts.
contents in order to prevent mobilisation of the pollutants currently All these findings give a clear indication of the need to improve
retained on it. Another challenge will be the management of the the on-going management system. Special care has to be given in the
produced sludge during water treatment. The current plan is to first place to the hygiene measures that farmers should undertake.
confine the dried sludge, but also its application as soil amendment The amount of water and nutrients provided to the fields also needs
is being considered, if the sludge meets the established threshold to be optimised. For this, field trials in which different management
concentrations for inorganic and organic pollutants in the Mexican practices are tested and the water and nutrient balance is monitored
legislation (Diario Oficial de la Federación 2003). This scenario can provide the required information. The study of fields irrigated for
will implicate no change on the actual environmental risks of different lengths of time yields useful information that makes it possible
eutrophication and pollution mentioned before; it will rather most to establish guidelines for the safer use of wastewater in this region and
probably increase these risks, as the nutrient and pollutant loads will for other sites with similar soils.
be much larger and occur in shorter time intervals, leading to larger The starting operations of the new wastewater treatment plant
disequilibria. Another concern is the formation of trihalomethanes, give a unique opportunity to test whether the large investment and
which will form as a consequence of the chlorination in combination operation costs of biological treatment are justified by a reduction
with the remaining organic compounds, which will eventually not be in the incidence of gastro-intestinal infections. Our working group is
eliminated completely by the wastewater treatment. currently performing an epidemiological study that aims to compare
the incidence of diarrhea in children aged < 5 years in communities
that are currently exposed to untreated wastewater and will soon
switch to irrigate with treated wastewater. We will further continue
4. Lessons Learned and Future Research Needs monitoring the fields to measure the impact of water quality
changes on the soil organic matter and the nitrogen balance of the
The current agricultural system has clearly improved crop productivity system. Particular attention will also be given to the behaviour of
in this semi-arid region. The infiltrating wastewater has further heavy metals and organic contaminants as pharmaceuticals in the
recharged the aquifer, which is today a valuable water resource for the soil-aquifer-crop interface. Here also the relevance of the increased
inhabitants. Soil Aquifer Treatment removes pathogens, suspended presence of resistance genes to antibiotic treatment deserves to be
solids, organic matter and most pollutants very efficiently, but not the investigated.
soluble salts, nor other soluble metal species such as organo-metallic
Pb complexes, or soluble or negatively charged organic compounds
and their metabolites. Excess nitrogen is applied to the fields by
overflow irrigation, and although the current system uses nitrogen
quite efficiently, the recharged groundwater is polluted with nitrate.
Several pollutants, among them specially heavy metals but also some
pharmaceuticals, accumulate in the top soil in the medium term and

134 135
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Guédron, S., C. Duwig, BL. Prado, D. Point, M. G. Flores and C. Siebe. 2014. “(Methyl)
mercury, arsenic and lead contamination of the world’s largest wastewater irrigation
Chapela-Lara, M. 2011. “Variación temporal en el contenido de metales pesados regados
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Jiménez, B and A Chávez. 2004. “Quality assessment of an aquifer recharged with
S. Ruiz-Velazco. 2000. “Risk factors for Giardia intestinalis infection in agricultural villages
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Conagua (Comisión Nacional del Agua). 2010. “Estadísticas agrícolas de los distritos de
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McGrath, SP, AC. Chang, AL. Page, and E. Witter. 1994. “Land application of sewage
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E. Grohmann, and J. Siemens. 2012. “Accumulation of Pharmaceuticals, Enterococcus,
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Navarro, I, A. Chávez, JA. Barrios, C. Maya, E. Becerril, S. Lucario and B. Jiménez. 2015.
“Wastewater reuse for irrigation. Practices, Safe Reuse and Perspectives. Case 2.” In CASE 8
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Payne, B. 1975. “La interacción del agua de riego con el agua subterránea y el río Tula
Eco-Friendly Wastewater Treatment for Reuse in
en el Valle del Mezquital. Informe final” (in Spanish). IAEA Isotope Hydrology section. Agriculture (India)
Siebe, C. 1994a. “Akkumulation, Mobilität und Verfügbarkeit von Schwermetallen in
langjährig mit städtischen Abwässern bewässerten Böden in Zentralmexiko” (in German). Ravinder Kaur 1
Hohenheimer Bodenkundliche Hefte 17. Hohenheim: Hohenheim Verlag.

Siebe, C. 1994b. “Acumulación y disponibilidad de metales pesados en suelos regados

con aguas residuales en el distrito de riego 03, Tula, Hidalgo, México” (in Spanish).
Revista Internacional de Contaminación Ambiental 10:15–21. Abstract
Siebe, C. 1998. “Nutrient inputs to soils and their uptake by alfalfa through long-term
irrigation with untreated sewage effluent in Mexico.” Soil Use and Management 13:1– 5.
Oxidation ponds or activated sludge processes are the two most
commonly deployed wastewater treatment technologies in India.
Siebe, C and E. Cifuentes. 1995. “Environmental Impact of Wastewater Irrigation in However, these processes are expensive and require complex
Central Mexico- An overview.” International Journal of Environmental Health Research operations and maintenance. In view of these limitations, constructed
5 (2):161–73.
wetland technology has been receiving greater attention in recent years.
Siebe, C and WR. Fischer. 1996. “Adsorption of Pb, Cd, Cu and Zn by two soils of volcanic However, the rate of adoption of wetland technology for wastewater
origin under long term irrigation with untreated sewage effluent in Central Mexico.” treatment in developing countries has been low due a general belief
Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 159:357–64.
that these technologies have large land area requirements. Batch-fed
Siemens, J, G. Huschek, C. Siebe, and M. Kaupenjohann. “Concentrations and mobility wetland systems with shorter hydraulic retention times (HRTs) have
of human pharmaceuticals in the world’s largest wastewater irrigation system, Mexico- generally been found to translate into smaller land requirements and
City-Mezquital Valley.” Water Research 42 2008:2124–34. thus appear more acceptable in developing countries. Keeping this
World Health Organization (WHO). 1996. Trace elements in human nutrition and health.
in mind, a batch-fed (<1-day HRT) municipal wastewater treatment
Geneva: WHO. plant with vertical sub-surface flow wetland technology and a 1,500-
LPD capacity was developed at the sewage plot site of the Indian
Agricultural Research farm. The pilot plant has been in operation since
November 2009 and is being continuously monitored for nutrient/heavy
metal (pollutant) mass reduction efficiencies. The long-term average
pollutant mass reduction efficiency of the pilot system illustrated its
capacity to reduce wastewater turbidity and nitrate, phosphate, and

1
Ravinder Kaur 
Project Director, Water Technology Centre & Director (Acting) Indian Agricultural
Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, India
e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

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potassium concentrations by up to 81%, 68%, 48% and 47%, Oxidation ponds or activated sludge processes are the two
respectively. Planted wetland systems, in general, seemed to have most common methods of municipal wastewater treatment in India.
an edge over unplanted ones. Nutrient removal efficiencies seemed These processes are expensive and require complex operations
to be higher for Phragmites karka based wetland systems. The Typha and maintenance. Furthermore, due to improper design, poor
latifolia based systems, on the other hand, were observed to be maintenance, frequent electricity breakdowns and/or a lack of
associated with a higher oxidation potential and thus higher sulphate technical manpower, these conventional wastewater treatment
reduction efficiencies (50.51%). These systems also seemed to be facilities do not function properly and therefore remain closed
associated with significantly higher Ni (62%), Fe (45%), Pb (58%), most of the time. In view of these limitations, in recent years,
Co (62%) and Cd (50%) removal efficiencies. A comparison of the constructed wetland technology (Mitsch and Gosselink 2007) has
ecological footprint and sustainability of the experimental wetland been receiving greater attention. However, its rate of adoption in
systems compared with a hypothetic conventional sewage treatment developing countries has been quite low (Denny 1997), primarily
plant (STP) showed that the experimental wetland systems were 1,500 due to a general belief that these technologies have large land area
times more sustainable. Based on these experiences, the technology requirements. Wetland systems with shorter hydraulic retention
has been recently up-scaled to a 2.2 MLD horizontal sub-surface flow times (HRTs) have generally been found to translate into smaller
system for treating sewage waters in the Krishi Kunj colony adjoining land area requirements. Furthermore, such batch-fed systems (with
the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) campus. The up- increased detention times) have been reported to be associated with
scaled system has the potential to irrigate 132 ha of land on the Indian not only lower treatment areas (Mehrdadi et al. 2009) but also higher
Agricultural Research farm. pollutant removal efficiency. This has been observed to have had an
Keywords: engineered wetlands, energy, eco-budgeting, sustainability, implication on their greater acceptability in developing countries
phyto-remediation like India. However, such batch-fed wetland systems, with < 1-day
HRT, have not been extensively tested across tropical developing
countries so far.
Keeping the aforementioned facts in, mind a constructed wetland
1. Background technology-based pilot plant was developed at the wastewater
irrigated plot site of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI)
Freshwater scarcity, the generation of increasing volumes of farm, with the basic aim of assessing its a) pollutant removal efficiency
wastewater, the degradation of freshwater resources, and the and upscale potential for augmenting IARI-farm irrigation water
interconnected food insecurity, due to rapid urbanisation/ supplies, and b) ecological footprint and sustainability compared with
industrialisation, are driving many countries to use marginal- a conventional sewage water treatment plant.
quality water in agriculture. Agricultural reuse of wastewater is fast
becoming popular worldwide because it closes the loop between
water demand and wastewater disposal and enhances fertilizer
security as a resource for poor farmers. However, due to the lack of 2. The Pioneering Initiative
proper treatment facilities and awareness in developing countries,
the unplanned application of wastewater/raw sewage is increasing In view of the aforementioned limitations, a business model-integrated,
the risk of agricultural sustainability and consumer/environmental innovative, de-centralised, energy-efficient and eco-friendly wastewater
health. Thus for safe agricultural disposal (with optimum profit), the treatment technology was conceptualised and developed between
safe, economic and effective treatment of sewage is one of the most 2009 and 2011 and later up-scaled between 2011 and 2013, for
challenging problems faced worldwide. managing urban wastewater discharge from the Krishi Kunj/Loha Mandi

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colony and its reuse for irrigation/aquaculture on the Indian Agricultural 2.2. Specific Objectives of the Initiative
Research Institute (IARI) campus.
Against the backdrop of an acute water shortage, on the one hand,
and the availability of an appreciable volume of an untreated urban
2.1. Situation Prior to the Initiative wastewater stream in the farm area, on the other hand, which could
be recycled and reused for safe farm irrigation (after its appropriate
The IARI campus is located at the heart of the National Capital Territory treatment), a study was initiated to:
(NCT), Delhi (India), and is crossed by a network of sewage drains
whose total discharge amounts to about 700 ha m/year (or about 20 • Devise an innovative, low-cost, and energy-efficient decentralised
MLD). These sewage drains receive domestic and industrial effluents urban wastewater treatment technology;
generated by the residential areas adjoining/within the IARI campus • Compare its ecological footprint with a comparable (hypothetic)
and a complex combination of industrial and commercial units around conventional wastewater treatment plant;
the IARI micro-watershed. • Assess the impact of wastewater treated in this way on soil health
Prior to the initiative, the urban (untreated) wastewater stream, and agricultural produce; and
flowing out of the Krishi Kunj and Loha Mandi colonies, crossed the • Integrate the developed decentralised wastewater treatment
Indian Agricultural Research Institute farm to ultimately merge with the technology with an appropriate business model for long-term self-
nearby Loha Mandi drain (an off-shoot of the Najafgarh drain) and the sustainability and wide-scale adoption in peri-urban/urban areas.
Yamuna river. The wastewater stream was found to be associated with
inter-seasonal turbidity levels of 200 to 1,000 NTU; BOD levels of 230
to 730 ppm; 3 to 28 ppm phosphate, 0.1 to 12 ppm nitrate, 11 to 2.3. Implementation Process
99 ppm sulphate, 0.1 to 1.3 ppm nickel, 1.5 to 2.3 ppm chromium,
0.05 to 0.28 ppm lead, 0.31 to 4.65 ppm zinc, and 0.41 to 23.60 ppm The technology was implemented via following stages:
iron. Besides causing extensive mosquito breeding in the farm area and
the urban neighbourhood, continuous ponding of this wastewater was Stage I (Piloting)
also reported for extensive soil/groundwater degradation in the IARI The proposed initiative stems from a pilot comprising 16 small-
farmlands. A detailed analysis of total heavy metal pollution in the local scale batch-fed vertical sub-surface flow experimental wastewater
farm area (through which this untreated urban wastewater stream was treatment cells (i.e. mesocosms, each with a 500 litre capacity), which
flowing) revealed 1.53 times more than the permissible level of total were developed in 2009. These were planted with 4 replicates of 3
chromium (253.27 mg/kg), 0.97 times more than permissible level of emergent vegetations (such as Phragmites karka, Acorous calamus
zinc (393.63 mg/kg), 3.09 times more than permissible level of copper and Typha latifolia) on diversified stratified media beds or left as non-
(122.65 mg/kg) and 1.30 times more than permissible level of lead vegetated controls for assessing their comparative nutrient and metal
(80.44 mg/kg) in the farm soils and 11.5 times more than permissible reduction efficiency and thereby screening an appropriate vegetation
level of chromium (1.25 ppm) in the local groundwater. and media combination with promising pollutant reduction efficiency.
Thus, though there was a voluminous wastewater stream (daily The mesososms were connected to the individual inlet pipes from the
discharge of 2.2 million litres) flowing through the farm area, which main (sewage water) influent discharge line, through ball valves to
could easily bridge the gap between the total demand for farm irrigation hydraulically maintain a maximum water level of 15.24 cm (or 6 inches)
water (1,800 million litres per year) and the available groundwater supply above media, at each flooding event. A diagrammatic representation
(1,280 million litres per year), it was of little use due to its contamination of the layout and the flow path of the pilot is shown in Figure 1. Influent
with many organic/inorganic pollutants and heavy metals. and effluent water samples were periodically sampled and analysed in

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triplicate, as per the standard estimation procedures, with due quality Stage II (p-scaling)
control ensured through careful standardisation, procedural blank Subsequently, the validated technology was up-scaled in March 2011
measurements and duplicate samples. to treat urban wastewater from the Krishi Kunj/Loha Mandi colonies.
Meanwhile, during 2010-11, a detailed temporal account of the
quantity and quality of the wastewater (i.e. total/inter-seasonal pollutant
load) flowing out of the Krishi Kunj/Loha Mandi colonies, along with the
available land area and spatially variable (gridded) soil quality profile
of the project site (as detailed in the section “Situation prior to the
initiative” ) were assessed.
The aforementioned land and water quality information was thereafter
used to develop a detailed design of the wastewater treatment facility
(during February-March 2011) and to work out the design of hydraulic
retention times (HRTs) for remediating 2.2 million litres per day of incoming
wastewater streams to the target permissible pollutant levels for safe land
application. The aforementioned HRTs were optimised for the different
pollutant loading rates observed at the project site. The construction of
the optimised design started in September 2011 (subsequent to a work
contract floated in March 2011) and ended in April 2013.

Figure 1: Layout of a pilot urban wastewater treatment system

Long-term monitoring (from 2009 to 2011) of the pollutant reduction

efficiency of these systems demonstrated that Typha latifolia-based
systems had an edge over the other systems, particularly in terms of
nitrate (90.74%), phosphate (77.65%) and potassium (48.57%) removal
efficiencies. Typha latifolia-based systems, associated with the highest
oxidation potential, were also associated with the highest sulphate
reduction efficiencies (65.41%). In general, the gravel media-based
systems planted with Typha latifolia seemed to be associated with
significantly higher nickel (70-74%), lead (53-63%), and other trace
metal removal efficiencies. These were also observed to be the best
chromium sequesters and associated with significantly higher BOD
and ORP reduction rates, and hence the most promising wastewater Figure 2: Panoramic view of the proposed (up-scaled) eco-friendly municipal wastewater treatment
treatment systems. plant and its components
The long-term environmental impacts of treated and untreated
sewage water irrigation on soil health, crop yield, seed vigour and food The wastewater treatment plant comprises of 3 treatment cells
grain contamination (during both the Rabi and Kharif seasons) were (each of 80 m by 40 m), where innovative organic, nutrient and metal
also assessed. pollutant reductions (i.e. secondary and tertiary treatments) take place,

144 145
as well as 2 sewage wells and 1 grit chamber, where preliminary/primary collected in an 80 m by 40 m by 2 m treated water collection tank, from
treatment takes place (Figure 2). The treated waters are collected in where it is finally pumped, through a riser and a set of hydrants, into
three individual sumps, located on the outlet side of each treatment the irrigation network of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute farm.
cell. These are interconnected with each other to allow gravity flow of
the entire treated water stream to a common collector sump, located Stage III (Technical and economic evaluation and operationalisation)
adjacent to a large (80 m by 40 m by 2 m) treated water collection The developed decentralised urban wastewater treatment plant, the
tank. The facility is spread over 1.42 ha of land. The sewage wells, first (and largest) of its kind in the country (see Google Maps image),
grit chamber, first wastewater treatment cell and the treated water has been continuously monitored for its nutrient and metal reduction
collection tank were operationalised in September 2012 while the efficiencies since September 2012 and was opened to the public after
other 2 treatment cells and part of the IARI irrigation network were its long-term validation and formal inauguration by the Union and the
operationalised in May 2013. State Ministers of Agriculture on July 2, 2014.
To make the whole system energy intensive, a complete gravity flow To integrate a good business model with the proposed decentralised
of the wastewater, from the grit chamber to the treated water collector wastewater treatment technology and to make the system completely
sump of the system was ensured. Each treatment cell is stratified with self-sustained, the emergent hyper-accumulators planted in the
a design bed of gravels of varying sizes/grades, onto which the pilot- treatment cells of the proposed facility were harvested and assessed
tested and promising Typha latifolia hyper-accumulating emergent technically and economically for their potential to be transformed to
vegetation is planted at design intensity, depths and distances. The particle board – a good substitute for wood (Figure 3), in collaboration
planted vegetation has the ability to transfer oxygen from its leaves, with a private partner.
down through its stem, and rhizomes, and out via its root system,
into the rhizosphere (root system) and hence requires no 24x7
operation of (energy-extensive) aerators, such as those generally
used in conventional wastewater treatment plants. As a result of this
natural ingress of ambient oxygen into the treatment cells, a very high
population of native micro-organisms (generally present in wastewater)
tends to be naturally bio-augmented in the root zone of the planted
vegetation, where most of the organic and inorganic (i.e. nutrient and
metal) transformations take place, thereby further ruling out the need for
the incorporation of any external bio-inoculants or any chemical-based
consumables and thus making the whole wastewater treatment process
completely eco-friendly, less energy-intensive and associated with no
sludge generation. The flow of the wastewater in each treatment cell is
regulated so that there is complete sub-surface flow, thereby leading
to no ponding, foul smell, mosquito breeding, or any direct contact
with wastewater. Thus, with the wastewater moving at design depth Figure 3: Transformation of harvested biomass into particle board – a cash-from-trash business
and flow rate through the root mass of this emergent vegetation and model integrated with the proposed urban wastewater treatment initiative

its interaction with native micro-organisms and planting media, various

organic/inorganic pollutants and heavy metals in the wastewater are Finally, the economic benefits and the CAPEX and OPEX of
transformed, sequestered and removed from the treatment zone the proposed initiative over and above a comparable (hypothetic)
– thereby remediating the wastewater. The treated water is finally conventional sewage treatment plant (STP) were assessed.

146 147
 Furthermore, an energy-based analysis – a comprehensive A comparison of the treated wastewater with local groundwater
environmental accounting technique (Odum 1996) – was used for samples from the IARI farm further showed (Figure 5) that the treated
assessing and comparing the ecological efficiency and sustainability wastewater (with legend: E-STP) was associated with either better or
of the conventional and proposed initiatives in terms of a number of identical EC, pH, turbidity, nitrate, sulphate, phosphate and metal
energy indices such as the Environmental Load Ratio (ELR), Energy concentrations than those for the groundwater of the surrounding farm
Sustainability Index (ESI) and the Percent Renewable (PR) indices. areas (viz. SPU, MB1A and STP).

3. Significant Outputs of the Initiative

3.1. Treatment Efficiency

Long-term monitoring of the treatment capacity of the developed

wastewater treatment plant could reveal its exceptional performance
(Figure 4), especially regarding Turbidity (99%), BOD (87%), Nitrate
(95%), Phosphate (90%), Lead (81%), and Iron (99%), and also in terms
of a number of other pollutants, such as Nickel (59%), Zinc (58%), and
Sulphate (48%), that were normally present in moderate concentrations
in proposed urban wastewater systems.
Figure 5: Quality of treated wastewater (e-STP) vs. local groundwater on the Indian Agricultural
Research Institute farm

3.2. Impact Assessment

3.2.1. Soil Health

The continuous application of treated sewage waters, in place of

untreated sewage water applications at the project site resulted in
significant reductions in soil total and bio-available nickel, lead and iron
concentrations (Figure 6). Soil bio-available chromium also decreased
from an initial level of 5.71 ± 0.88 mg/kg to 1.57 ± 0.07 mg/kg within
two years. Thus, continuous irrigation with treated sewage water led
to significant reductions in the soil pollutant load. However, these
were associated with no soil micro-nutrient depletion and no adverse
effects due to soil electrical conductivity and the exchangeable sodium
Figure 4: Pollutant reduction efficiency of the proposed urban wastewater treatment initiative percentage, which remained within safe limits.

148 149
 3.2.3. Metal Translocation and Food Grain Contamination

Individual metal translocation patterns in the wheat and paddy crop

plants revealed a higher food grain metal sequestration threat in wheat.
The analysis showed that the overall metal health hazard (as is evident
from Hazard Index, Figure 7) due to the consumption of wheat grains
produced through the use of untreated wastewater on the historically
metal-contaminated soils was about 1.6 times more than that due to
the consumption of paddy grains. About 45 to 60% of these health
hazards were contributed to by lead contamination. In general, food
grains produced through (lead-sequestering) Phragmites karka-treated
wastewater were observed to be associated with 44 to 58% fewer health
hazards. From a health point of view, the agricultural produce from
the sewage plot sites was still not suitable for human consumption;
especially due to considerable food grain metal, i.e. lead >> iron >
nickel ~ Mn contamination. However, these risks were far below those
observed in previous years, primarily due to the continuous application
Figure 6: Long-term environmental impact of treated sewage water irrigation on soil health of treated sewage waters.

3.2.2. Crop Health and Quality

The impact of the untreated and treated sewage water on the health
and quality of wheat and paddy crops was also estimated in terms of
plant/seed parameters, individual metal translocation patterns, and the
food grain metal sequestration threat. The positive impact of water
treatment could be best expressed in terms of the test weight or 100
seed weight of the paddy crop, as it was found to be significantly
lower for the crop irrigated with wastewater. Furthermore, though the
total number of tillers and the length of panicles were not significantly
different for the treated and untreated sewage water, the total number
of unproductive tillers and unfilled seeds per panicle were significantly
higher in the paddy crop irrigated with sewage water. These differences
were not very evident in a relatively low water-demanding crop such as
wheat. However, a number of tillers infected with termites and fungi in
both wheat and paddy crops were observed to be higher in the micro-
plots irrigated with sewage water.
Figure 7: Impact of treated and untreated sewage water on food grain metal-based consumer
health risks

150 151
3.2.4. Benefits conventional STP was about 83 times more than that in a (comparable)
proposed initiative. Amongst the purchased non-renewable resources,
An energy analysis of the proposed initiative (Table 1) showed that operational costs such as maintenance (48.10%) and electricity (28.31%)
renewable resources constituted 54.24% of total energy use, with contributed the most (76.41%), with the remaining 23.59% contributed
the other half (i.e. 45.76%) contributed by purchased non-renewable by construction (with an assumed life span of 20 years).
resources such as construction, electricity and maintenance. In the A comparison of the proposed initiative with a comparable
renewable (i.e. local + purchased) resource category, the local (i.e. free) conventional STP thus revealed clear electrical usage advantages,
renewable resources contributed the most (77.69%) energy. Purchased as electrical energy consumption was observed to be less than 1%
renewable resources such as the media and the vegetation, which of a conventional sewage treatment plant. Furthermore, the analysis
require servicing to access, constituted only 12% of total energy use and indicated that the proposed initiative required simpler maintenance as
were thus a minor source of total system energy use. In the purchased the system has no demand for any consumables and largely relies on
non-renewable resource category, labour-intensive purchased services the ecological action of (native) microbes and plants for their efficacy.
such as construction (63.26%, with an assumed life span of 20 years) Thus, in terms of standard cost-accounting, the proposed
and annual maintenance (36.47%) contributed most while electricity initiative was found to be associated with Rs. 0.545 Crore per
contributed least (0.27%). MLD of capital cost (CAPEX) and about Rs. 0.607 per lilolitre (KL)
of total operational and maintenance costs. In comparison with a
Table 1: Energy budgeting of proposed initiative vs. conventional STP comparable conventional wastewater treatment plant (Table 2), the
proposed initiative was thus observed to be associated with about
50-65% lower treatment costs.
INPUTS SOLAR ENERGY (sej/yr)
Table 2: Sustainability of the proposed initiative vs. conventional STP
Proposed Initiative Conventional STP

Local renewable resources 1.14 X 1016 1.82 X 1016 Energy Indices Proposed Initiative Conventional STP

Purchased renewable 3.27 X 1015 0.00

resources Energy Yield Ratio 0.70 0.01

Purchased non-renewable 3.97 X 1016 7.68 X 1017 Environment Loading 1.37 42.19
resources Ratio

Purchased resources 4.30 X 1016 7.68 X 1017 Renewable Percentage 0.54 0.02

Total resource use 5.44 X 1016 7.87 X 1017 Energy Sustainability 0.51 0.00034
Index

In contrast with the proposed initiative, a comparable (hypothetic)

sewage treatment plant was observed to be associated with far A comparison of the proposed eco-friendly wastewater treatment
higher (98.26%) purchased non-renewable resource energy use. The system with a conventional wastewater treatment plant showed that
contribution of total energy use by the non-renewable resources in a the proposed technology is associated with an energy requirement of

152 153
below 1%, zero-chemical application, zero-sludge generation, 50-65% 4. Conclusions
reduced treatment costs, and no skilled manpower requirements.
The proposed initiative could thus create a good-quality annual local
surface water source of about 660 million litres and could thus stop
3.3. Sustainability of the Project Initiative the practice of purchasing contaminated surface water (at Rs 18.5 lakh
per annum), from the Bhuli-Bhatiyaari drain, to meet the irrigation
The ecological efficiency and sustainability analysis of the proposed water demand of IARI farmland. The initiative could thus, in addition
initiative, in terms of a number of energy indices (Table 2), showed to resulting in an annual saving of about Rs 18.5 lakh and bridging an
that it utilises 27 times more renewable resources than a conventional annual gap (of 520 ML) between irrigation water demand and supply
sewage treatment plant and is thus 1,500 times more sustainable on IARI farmland, lead to effective urban wastewater management and
than a conventional STP. Furthermore, the proposed initiative was sanitation, with no foul smell or mosquitos breeding in the area. In fact
found to cause 33 times less environmental stress than a comparable the project site, which used to be completely unapproachable (Figure
conventional sewage treatment plant. 8), now looks like an eco-park and is frequently used by residents as
Additionally, the vegetation planted in each treatment cell of the a favourite site for morning walking/jogging. The facility has already
proposed fully operational wastewater treatment system could be resulted in considerable tangible savings due to the discontinuation
harvested (once every two months) to yield 36 tons of dry biomass of purchased contaminated surface water for irrigating IARI farmland.
per annum (Figure 3). This could be successfully transformed to a From an intangible perspective, it is expected that a continued
(termite and waterproof) particle board (9,000 sq. meters per annum; combined use of the treated water source, along with the existing
market price Rs. 200-250/sq. meter) or sold to the local particle groundwater source, will replenish receding groundwater aquifers
board manufacturers (at Rs. 2000 per ton) as dry matter – thereby not only at IARI but also in the neighbouring urban area. On a long-
fetching a maximum annual income of about Rs. 18 lakh per annum term scale, this is expected not only to reduce total energy use with
and integrating a perfect cash-from-trash business model with the respect to groundwater extraction but also significantly improve soil/
proposed initiative. groundwater quality and productivity on IARI farmlands.

References

Denny, P. 1997. “Implementation of constructed wetlands in developing countries.”

Water Science Technology 35:27–34.

Mitsch, W.J. and J.G. Gosseink. 2007. Wetlands. 4th edition. New York: John Wiley.

Mehrdadi, N., A. Rahmani, A.A. Azimi, and A. Torabian. 2009. “Study of operation
subsurface flow wetland in batch flow system for municipal wastewater treatment.” Asian
Journal of Chemistry 21(7):5245–50.

Odum, II.T. 1996. Environmental Accounting: ENERGY and Decision Making. New York:
John Wiley.

Figure 8: Satellite view of the project site (a) before and (b) after the proposed initiative

154 155
CASE 9
Productivity of Sugarcane Irrigated with Effluent
from the Cañaveralejo Wastewater Treatment Plant
in Cali, Colombia (Colombia)

C. A. Madera-Parra, A. Echeverri, and N. Urrutia 1

Abstract

In Valle del Cauca, southwest Colombia, surface and ground water is

used for sugarcane irrigation at a rate of 100 m3/ton of sugar produced.
Preliminary experiments were carried out to determine the effect on
the sugarcane (variety CC-8592) yield irrigated with effluent from the
Cañaveralejo primary wastewater treatment plant (PTAR-C) in Cali.
Irrigation was applied for one year on a 0.36 ha plot. Two water sources
were used: effluent from PTAR-C and groundwater (GW). A random
block experiment was conducted to test the effect of irrigation water
quality on growth, productivity and sugar production of the crop.
Results showed that the effluent meets the water quality standards for
agricultural use (Ayers & Westcot 1985). In addition, according to the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) (1954) both kinds of
irrigation water were classified as C2S1. Crop growth behaved similar to
that expected for the region and variety studied. Productivity variables
were slightly above the expected values (145 t/ha sugar cane, 16.9%
saccharose, 17.6% Brix grades). We did not find differences among
plots irrigated with both water sources. Therefore, it can be concluded

1
C. A Madera-Parra  • A. Echeverri • N. Urrutia;
EIDENAR School, Faculty of Engineering, University of Valle, Cali, Colombia.
e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

157
that the reuse of effluent for irrigation is viable for crop productivity, but the impact on the productivity of the sugarcane (variety CC-8592)
other aspects like soil sodicity indicators must be further investigated. irrigated with effluent from the PTAR-C under the climatic conditions of
Keywords: crop yield, irrigation, reuse, sugarcane, productivity, the Valle del Cauca region in southwest Colombia.
wastewater

2. Materials and Methods

1. Introduction
The study was carried out within the Cañaveralejo Wastewater
Only 0.003% of the Earth’s total water is considered useful for human Treatment Plant located in the north-eastern zone of the city of Cali on
activities. Of this amount, developed countries use about 35% in the left bank of the Cauca River (3º 28’ 7’’ N, 76º 28’ 40’’ W).
agriculture, while developing countries use over 70% (FAO 2007)
since they supply most of the world’s food. The Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) (2008) suggests that conservation measures need 2.1. Experimental Design
to be undertaken in the agricultural use of water in view of the expected
increase in agricultural production in the next 50 years. Among the The experimental design used for the research was of randomised
alternatives presented by the FAO (2008), rainwater harvesting, rain-fed complete blocks. Three blocks were established with nine furrows of
agriculture, increased water productivity, and the reuse of wastewater sugarcane each. The furrows were 100 m long, 1.5 m wide, and there
are mentioned. was an 18 m separation zone between blocks (Figures 1 and 2).
Over recent decades, relevance has been given to the comprehensive
management of water, which has raised the possibility of reusing
wastewater for irrigation in Latin America (for example in Argentina,
Chile, Peru, Mexico), Europe (Germany), Africa (South Africa, Tunisia,
Sudan), Asia (Israel, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, India, China), and North
America (Parreiras 2005). In Colombia the use of treated wastewater
is not a common practice, given the low treatment levels and partial
unawareness of the possible impacts upon the environment. According
to Madera (2005) in Colombia only 8% of domestic wastewater is
treated before discharge into natural water bodies, which has led to the
indirect reuse of wastewater. Cali, Colombia’s third most populated city
has the Cañaveralejo Wastewater Treatment Plant (PTAR-C), which can
operate under two modalities: Conventional Primary Treatment (CPT)
and Chemically Enhanced Primary Treatment (CEPT).
Sugarcane cultivation is the main agricultural activity in the valley
of the Cauca River. It has 208,254 ha planted with this crop, which
represents 5% of the total area planted in Colombia (CENICAÑA 2010).
The demand for irrigation water is ca. 300−400 mm/year (Torres et
al. 2004), which represents considerable pressure on the surface and
groundwater sources of the zone. The aim of this study was to assess Figure 1: General layout of experimental set-up (not to scale) (B: Block. T 1,2,3: Treatments)

158 159
 Table 1: Fertilization doses applied for T3 (0.045 ha block-1)

NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENT (kg) FERTILIZER (kg)

Block N P2O5 K2O Urea Triple super- Potassium

46% N phosphate chloride
46% P2O5 60% K2O

I 4.5 0.0 0.0 9.8 0.0 0.0

II 4.5 2.0 3.4 9.8 4.4 5.7

III 4.5 0.0 0.0 9.8 0.0 0.0

Figure 2: General view of the experimental set-up

Total 13.5 2.0 3.4 29.5 4.4 5.7

The research factor was the quality of the irrigation water. The water
sources were: groundwater and the effluent from the PTAR-C operating
under CEPT. The experimental treatments were: T1: irrigation with
effluent from PTAR-C, T2: irrigation with groundwater, and T3: irrigation
Table 2: Chemical and macronutritional properties of soil and its cation ratios
with groundwater and the application of chemical fertilizers (urea, triple
superphosphate and potassium chloride); the doses applied are shown
in Table 1. Table 2 shows the initial soil nutritional status for each block.
Block pH Ca K Mg Na CEC7 Ca/ Mg/ Ca+ EC ESP OM P- N- N-
The research parameters were: sugarcane production (t/ha), saccharose
Mg K Mg/K BrayII NH4 NO3
(%), reducing sugars (%), and Brix grades (*Br). Table 3 presents the
variables, sampling frequencies, and measurement techniques.
Und cmol kg-1 µmho % gr mg kg-1
cm-1 kg-1

2.2. Soil Preparation and Irrigation Scheduling

I 7.41 23.52 0.33 9.5 0.25 29.55 2.5 29 100 274 0.74 35.93 29.46 14.96 13.19

The soil was an inceptisol with vertic properties (Vertic Endoaquept), II 7.42 21.21 0.26 8.93 0.25 26.6 2.4 34 116 215 0.82 25.09 6.62 11.21 9.02
silty clay texture and structure in angular blocks according to field
description and the regional soil study (IGAC, 1980). The cultivation III 7.41 23.88 0.31 8.93 0.26 30.2 2.7 29 106 222 0.78 33.74 18.74 8.52 16.17
plots were subjected to levelling, ploughing, harrowing, and furrowing.
The irrigation method was furrow irrigation using closed pipes in the Mean 7.41 22.87 0.30 9.12 0.25 28.78 2.5 31 107 237 0.78 31.59 18.27 11.56 12.79
conveyance system and gated pipes in the distribution system at field
level. Irrigation scheduling was based on the daily water balance. Five
irrigations (324 mm in total) were applied during the period of the
crop’s physiological development (August 2009−August 2010).

160
 2.3. Data Analysis Techniques
Table 3: Control and response variables
Analysis of the results was carried out according to the experimental
design (randomised complete blocks). The Anderson-Darling Test was
PARAMETER UNIT SAMPLING TECHNIQUE
used to check the normality of the data. One way ANOVA was applied
to determine if there were differences between treatments (using
Crop Production Tonne/ Weighing in field Weighing in field with Fair-
MINITAB 15 software). The mathematical model assumed was:
hectare of the whole banks scale 500-Kg
production capacity (precision: 0.25 Kg)

Saccharose % Milling of 10 Liquid chromatography Yij = μ + Ai + Bj + Eij

stalks per
Reducing sugar % treatment and Liquid chromatography
extraction of 100
ml for laboratory where Yij is the response variable; μ the population mean; Ai the effect
Brixgrades % analysis Refractometry
of the ith treatment, Bj the effect of the jth block, and Eij the experimental
error associated with the ith treatment in the jth block.
Water pH - A 1 liter sample Potentiometer
of each water
CEw dSm-1 quality in each Potentiometer
irrigation, taken
at the outlet of
Calcium mEq L-1 the gated pipe Spectrophotometry
3. Results and Discussion
Magnesium mEq L-1 Spectrophotometry

Sodium mEq L-1 Spectrophotometry 3.1. Irrigation Water Quality

Bicarbonates mEq L-1 Titration-metrics Table 4 presents the characteristics of two irrigation water sources
(groundwater and PTAR-C effluent). The values correspond to the
Chlorides mEq L-1 Titration-metrics average of the analyses performed on the five irrigations applied
during the research. There were differences in the concentrations of
Sulfates mEq L-1 Titration-metrics
ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, phosphates, and total phosphorus
Nitrites mg L-1 Digestion titration in relation to the PTAR-C effluent, which presented the highest values,
even above the FAO reference values for irrigation given by Ayers &
Nitrates mg L-1 Digestion titration Westcot (1985). For nitrates, both the effluent and the groundwater
were higher than the FAO reference values. The high nutrient values
N- NH3 mg L-1 Titration are characteristic of treated wastewater, and this is one of the potential
benefits of reusing this water in irrigation. However, they also represent
Phosphates mg L-1 Digestion titration
a potential risk to contaminating the groundwater, especially in light
(PO4)
textured soils and in zones where irrigation methods are inefficient (for
example, flood irrigation).

163
 The pH value of irrigation water is within the reference range of
Table 4: Irrigation water quality (Average)
water quality for irrigation. The electrical conductivity, in both cases,
is below the limit value (< 0.7 dSm-1), which shows a low risk of
salinisation. The values of sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) related to
PARAMETER UNIT GROUND- S.D. EFFLUENT S.D. RANGE*
ECw values indicate a slight risk of sodicity in both cases (Ayers &
WATER
Westcot 1985), which means a possible damage to the soil structure,
due to the dispersion of soil aggregates by the Na ions. For this
pH - 6.98 0.36 6.7 0.27 6.0 – 8.5
reason, the hazard of sodicity exists even though the Na content in
Electrical dS m-1 0.45 0.11 0.6 0.05 0–3 the irrigation water did not reach levels considered as toxic (3 meq
conductivity L-1). Additionally, according to USDA (1954) both irrigation waters
are classified as C2S1 – i.e., they are of medium salinity and thus
Calcium mEq L-1 1.88 0.23 1.6 0.19 0 – 20 suitable for the irrigation of crops moderately sensitive to salts, and
low content of sodium with a certain riskiness of accumulation for
Magnesium mEq L-1 0.91 0.12 0.8 0.11 <5
sensitive crops like some fruits and avocado.
Sodium mEq L-1 2.35 0.11 1.7 0.16 <3
From the agronomic point of view, it was noted that the treated
wastewater did not differ from the groundwater given that, according
Bicarbonate mEq L-1 3.57 0.91 3.1 0.77 <10 to the USDA (1954) and Ayers & Wescot (1985) both kinds of water
have the same characteristics and are not potentially associated with
Chloride mEq L-1 1.21 0.71 1.0 0.81 0 – 30 any risk of soil salinisation. The hazard of sodicity is medium and could
represent problems in soils with high contents of Na or Mg because it
Sulphate mEq L-1 0.79 0.96 1.0 0.95 0 – 20
would enhance the dispersing effect of these ions (García et al. 2002).
Soils in Colombia’s sugarcane zone are generally of good fertility,
SAR - 1.99 0.04 1.5 0.13 0 – 15
but some zones present high contents of Mg and Na. The combined
Nitrites mg L-1 1.95 2.68 1.7 2.20 <5 effect of the natural condition of these soils and the medium sodicity
hazard of the effluent could increase the damage on the soil structure
Nitrates mg L-1 14.34 14.62 53.7 54.2 <5 due to dispersing effect of the Na and Mg.

N-NH3 mg L-1 2.67 1.92 15.8 10.3 0–5

3.2. Yield of Sugarcane, Sugars, and Degrees Brix

Total Nitrogen mg L-1 20.94 14.2 75.2 53.7 <30

Total phosphorus mg L-1 1.22 1.19 5.0 1.1 <2 Table 5 presents the results obtained from production (P), saccharose
(S), reducing sugars (AR), and Brix grades (°Bx) for the experimental
Phosphates (PO4) mg L-1 0.53 0.95 2.1 1.43 0–2 treatments. The Anderson-Darling Test showed that the data of all
the variables followed the normal distribution (p >0.05). It can be
observed that the mean production of sugarcane measured in tons
*
Range of normal values according to Ayers & Westcot (1985) of sugarcane per ha (TCH) was above the values expected in the
region − i.e., production levels above the range of 110−130 TCH
were obtained as reported by Cenicaña (2010).

165
Table 5: Average production response

BLOCK T P (t/ha) S (%) AR (%) °Bx (%)

B1 T1 146.1 15.3 2.2 17.3

T2 135.7 18.6 1.6 17.4
T3 128.8 18.6 1.8 15.7

B2 T1 144.7 17.5 0.4 17.8

T2 117.7 15.4 0.7 16.8
T3 123.3 18.4 0.4 19.1

B3 T1 147.2 18.1 0.97 17.8

T2 147.2 17.1 0.92 17.4
T3 148.5 15.4 0.92 17.1

T1 mean 146 17 1.2 17.6

Figure 3: Sugarcane production per treatment
T2 mean 133.5 17 1.1 17.2

Also the mean saccharose content (%) of all the treatments is

T3 mean 133.6 17.5 1 17.3
above the typical values for the valley of the Cauca River reported
by Larrahondo (1995) − that is, values of 11.5−13.5%. The mean
B: block; T: treatment; P: production of sugar cane; S: saccharose; AR: reducing sugars; °Bx: Brix grade. values for each treatment are similar to each other, but it should be
noted that T1 (wastewater application) reported the lowest content
If 120 TCH is taken as the regional average, treatment T1 of saccharose (3%) in spite of it having the highest sugarcane
increased sugarcane production by 21.6%. If the upper limit of the production. However, analysis of variance showed no significant
production range is taken as the reference, the increase in production differences among treatments (p = 0.945) or among blocks (p = 0.924)
was 12.3% (Figure 3). Analysis of variance indicated that there were (Figure 4). From this analysis, it may be stated that wastewater
no significant differences due to treatment (p = 0.197) or between application did not negatively affect the production of saccharose.
blocks (p = 0.097). The experimental values above the regional range may be explained
According to these results, the application of effluent increased by carrying out the experiment on soil that is not normally cultivated
sugarcane production above the value obtained for T3 (i.e., the use and which showed good fertility at the beginning of the study.
of groundwater plus chemical fertilizers, such treatment being the For the reducing sugars (RS), the mean value in all the treatments
common situation in the region), However, no statistically significant is within the range reported as normal for the region, which according
differences (p-value: 1.97) between treatments and among blocks to Larrahondo (1995) is between 1 and 5%. The mean values obtained
(p-value: 0.97) were founded. Application of the effluent generated are similar among treatments (Figure 4). Analysis of variance
a similar production to that reported by the sugarcane sector and indicated that no differences existed between treatments (p = 0.612),
which has also an added advantage represented by the potential but found significant differences between blocks (p = 0.003).
savings of chemical fertilizers that provide macronutrients (N, P, K).

166 167
 research are higher than those found by Silva (2008), who obtained
4.1% saccharose. Likewise, significant differences were not found in
sugarcane production (TCH) or in saccharose (%) among the treatments
studied. Productivity of the sugarcane variety was not affected, which
shows that it is viable to use the PTAR-C effluent to irrigate sugarcane
due to the higher concentrations of plant and soil nutrients.

4. Conclusion

Sugar cane production (TCH) was not affected by the application of the
PTAR-C effluent as irrigation water. On the contrary, slightly higher values were
obtained (133−145 t/ha) than the common range in the region (110−130 t/ha).
Reusing the effluent from the PTAR-C did not affect sugar production:
values of saccharose, Brix grades, and reducing sugars remained within the
ranges expected for the valley of the Cauca River, which are 11.5−13.5%
Figure 4: Saccharose (S), reducing sugars (RS), and Brix grades (BG) (%) for saccharose, 10−16% for Brix grade, and 1−5% for reducing sugars.
Given the productivity results obtained, it is concluded that the
As for sugarcane production and saccharose, the mean values of Brix effluent from the PTAR-C supplied the crop’s nutritional requirements
grades are above, in all the treatments, the range of common values for (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) in the first cultivation cycle.
the valley of the Cauca River which according to Larrahondo (1995) are The PTAR-C effluent represents a potential alternative for the
between 10 and 16%. The values obtained for this variable are similar, but irrigation of sugarcane under conditions of good soil fertility and low
T1 reports a slightly higher value than the other two treatments (Figure levels of Na and Mg to avoid possible dispersing effects of the soil
4). The statistical analysis applied indicated that no significant differences aggregates. Additional studies should be conducted to assess the
existed between treatments (p = 0.874) or between blocks (p = 0.500). hazard of soil sodicity and groundwater contamination.
This analysis again confirms that reuse the PTAR-C effluent for irrigation of Finally, as a recommendation or lesson learned from this research, it
sugarcane (CC-8597) did not negatively affect the Brix grade. is necessary to address research projects with a longer data collection
Given that the nutritional status of the soil was homogeneous at period in order to identify eventual damage to the physical and/or
the beginning of this research (Table 2), the results obtained in the chemical characteristics of the irrigated soil with the PTAR-C effluent.
four studied response variables show that sugarcane productivity was
positively affected and the values are above those reported as desirable
by the region’s sugarcane production sector. Nevertheless, this may be
associated with the fact that this was the soil’s first production cycle for Acknowledgments
which higher production and productivity indicators are expected.
The productivity values found were similar to those reported This research was financially supported by EMCALI EICE ESP (the Water
by Silva (2008), who used the same water and soil and the same Company of Cali). The authors would like to express their gratitude
sugarcane variety, but in pots. This author obtained a yield of 133 t to José A. Ceron, engineer, and Juan F. Moreno of EMCALI for their
ha−1 of sugarcane. Regarding saccharose, the results of this current support during the research activities.

168 169
References
CASE 10
Ayers, R. S. and D.B. Westcot. 1985. “Water Quality for Agriculture.” Irrigation and
Drainage Paper No. 29, Rev. 1. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Cereal and
CENICAÑA (2010). “Informe Anual 2009” (in Spanish). CENICAÑA
Legume Crops through Sewage Water Irrigation
FAO. 2007. Water at a Glance − The Relationship between Water, Agriculture, Food and Phosphate Fertilisers (Pakistan)
Security and Poverty. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization.

FAO. 2008. Agua para la Alimentación, Agua para la vida: Una Evaluación Exhaustiva de
la Gestión del Agua en la Agricultura (in Spanish). Colombo: Instituto Internacional del
G. Murtaza, M. Bilal Shakoor, and Nabeel Khan Niazi 1
Manejo del Agua.

García, A., A. González, and A. Torrente. 2002. “Propiedades químicas y físicas de los
suelos magnésicos del Valle del Cauca (Colombia)” (in Spanish). Suelos Ecuatoriales
30(2):74−141. Abstract
Instituto Geográfico Agustín Geográfico (IGAC). 1980. Estudio Semi-detallado de Suelos
del Valle Geográfico del Río Cauca (in Spanish). Bogotá: IGAC. Food crop irrigation with untreated sewage water is an increasingly
common practice worldwide as well as in Pakistan, thus requiring
Larrahondo, J. E. 1995. “Calidad de la caña de azúcar” (in Spanish). In El Cultivo de la management strategies for safe crop production on contaminated
Caña en la Zona Azucarera de Colombia, 337−354. Cali: Centro de Investigación de la
Caña de Azúcar de Colombia.
soils. In Pakistan, water availability has declined from 1,299 m3 per
capita in 1996-97 to 1,100 m3 per capita in 2006 and is projected to
Madera, C. 2005. “Reuso de Agua Residual: Aspectos sobre la Calidad Necesitan Mayor fall below 700 m3 per capita by 2025. Therefore, the irrigation of food
Atención” (in Spanish). Accessed May 2014.
crops with wastewater has become an important practice. A field study
http://pacificosur.rirh.net/legal_vista.php?id=5.
was conducted to examine the phyto-availability of three heavy metals
Parreiras, S. 2005. “Tratamento de esgoto por disposição no solo” (in Portuguese). (cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn)) in two cereal (wheat, maize)
Paper presented at “O Curso sobre Tratamento de Esgoto por Disposição no Solo”, and legume (chickpea, mung bean) crops in response to the application
Belo Horizonte, May 30, 2005.
of sewage water or phosphatic fertiliser over two successive years. Five
Silva, J. 2008. “Reuso del Efluente de la Planta de Tratamiento de Aguas Residuales fertiliser treatments, i.e. control, recommended nitrogen (N) applied
de Cañaveralejo PTAR-C en el Riego de Caña de Azúcar” (in Spanish). MSc thesis. alone and in combination with three levels of phosphorus (P): half, full
Universidad del Valle. Cali. and 1.5 times the recommended P designated as N0P0, N1P0, N1P0.5,
Torres, A. J. S., V. R. Cruz, and T. F. Villegas. 2004. “Avances Técnicos para la Programación
N1P1.0, and N1P1.5, respectively. Tissue concentrations of Cd, Cu, Zn,
y el Manejo del Riego en Caña de Azúcar” (in Spanish), 2nd ed. Technical Series No. 33. and P were determined in various plant parts (root, straw, and grains).
Cali: Centro de Investigación de la Caña de Azúcar de Colombia. While maximum biomass production was obtained with the application
of P at half the recommended dose, the concentrations of heavy metals
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). 1954. “Diagnosis and Improvement of
Saline and Alkali Soils.” Regional Salinity Laboratory, Washington, D.C.
1
G. Murtaza  • M. Bilal Shakoor • Nabeel Khan Niazi
Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad,
Pakistan; e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

170 171
in crops generally decreased with increasing P levels. Tissue metal waste, and waste disposal are the major anthropogenic causes of soil
concentrations increased with the application of N alone. Translocation contamination with heavy metals (Murtaza et al. 2011). Cadmium is a
and accumulation of Zn and Cu were consistently higher than Cd. The non-essential element, which is of particular concern as a food chain
pattern of Cd accumulation differed among plant species – relatively contaminant owing to its greater solubility and bioavailability, as well
more Cd being accumulated by dicots than monocots, especially as its inherent high toxicity, even at low concentrations, to both plants
in their grains. The order of Cd accumulation in grains was maize > and human beings (Sarwar et al. 2010). In comparison, while at low
chickpea > mung bean > wheat. Mung bean and chickpea straws also concentrations Zn and Cu are both important essential micronutrients
had higher tissue Cd concentration above permissible limits. The two for plants, when present at higher concentrations, they also become
legume species behaved similarly, while cereal species differed from important toxic pollutants. Due to their chemical similarities, Cd, Cu,
each other in their Cd accumulation. Metal ion concentrations were and Zn interact in soil-plant systems and can affect the bioavailability of
markedly higher in roots followed by straw and grains. Increasing soil- each other (Kim et al. 2010).
applied P also increased the extractable metal and P concentrations In plants, metals present at toxic levels disturb several physiological,
in the post-harvest soil. Despite a considerable addition of metals by biochemical and metabolic processes including photosynthesis and
P fertiliser, all levels of applied P effectively decreased metal phyto- respiration (Ekmekçi et al. 2008), mineral nutrient uptake, translocation
availability in sewage water-irrigated soils, and applying half of the and metabolism (Sarwar et al. 2010), cell elongation and the activity
recommended dose of P fertiliser was the most feasible solution for of several enzymes (Gopal and Rizvi 2008). Consequently, plants have
curtailing plant metal uptake from soils. These findings may have wide developed several strategies to partition and translocate metals into
applications for the safer crop production of monocot species when different plant parts (i.e. root, shoot and grain) in different proportions.
irrigating crops with sewage water containing heavy metals. Since cereal and legume crops differ in their root morphology, root
Keywords: city sewage, cereal, legume, metal uptake, phosphate density, genetic makeup, and tendency for metal uptake, translocation
fertiliser and accumulation (Nuruzzaman et al. 2006), studying the differing
responses to the metal toxicity of these two broad crop classes is of
great importance.
Nitrogen and phosphate fertilisers, besides providing plant
1. Introduction nutrients and increasing food production, also impact soil pH, ionic
strength, surface charge, complex formation, rhizosphere composition
Over the past few decades many societies have experienced increased and soil microbial activity (Zhang et al. 2010). Changes in soil and crop
economic development driven by large-scale urbanisation and management for both cereal and legumes in order to obtain high yields
industrialisation, which has undoubtedly increased the demand for can also inadvertently influence the phyto-availability of Cd, Cu and Zn
metals and consequently led to intensive anthropogenic environmental and hence possible entry in the food chain (Grant 2011).
emissions. In particular, the contamination of soils with toxic metals has In Pakistan, di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and urea are the two
become a matter of worldwide agricultural and environmental concern main chemical inputs commonly used for supplementing the P and N
affecting the health of crops, livestock and humans (Huang et al. 2012). demand of crops. Hence their effect on metal behaviour, bioavailability
Both natural (weathering of parent material, volcanism) and and accumulation in crop species grown on contaminated soils is of
anthropogenic sources have resulted in the widespread release of heavy particular significance for safe crop production (McGowen et al. 2001).
metals in the soil and water environments (Purushotham et al. 2013). Legume and cereal crops are both important and ubiquitous sources
The agricultural use of pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers, municipal of food for humans and feed and fodder for animals. However, the
solid wastes, sewage sludge, irrigation with wastewater, burning of increased use of sewage water for irrigation has resulted in metal
fossil fuels, smelting/mining activities, automobiles, incineration of contamination in many agricultural soils, which is of grave concern for

172 173
field crop cultivation. Thus, this field study was specifically conducted Table 1: Physiochemical Properties of the Soil Used in this Study
to assess the phyto-availability and accumulation of Cd, Cu and Zn in
cereal and legume crops as influenced by P fertiliser application and
irrigation with city sewage water. Soil Parameter Value

Sand (%) 65
Silt (%) 25
Clay (%) 10
2. Materials and Methods Textural class Sandy loam
pHs 7.65
ECe (dS m-1) 1.9
2.1 Experimental Site OM (%) 1.2
CaCO3 (%) 0.9
The study area was situated in a suburban area of Faisalabad, Pakistan, HCO3- (mmolc L-1) 1.3
where untreated city sewage water has been used to irrigate cereals, Cl- (mmolc L-1) 5.0
millets, fodders and vegetables for more than 30 years. Ca2++Mg2+ (mmolc L-1) 2.1
Na+ (mmolc L-1) 16.0
K+ (mmolc L-1) 0.38
SAR (mmol L-1)1/2 15.70
2.2 Cultivation of Crops
AB-DTPA extractable
A two-year field experiment was conducted during 2006-08 to
Cd (mg kg-1) 0.42
investigate the uptake of metals in different monocot (wheat, maize) Zn (mg kg-1) 6.66
and dicot (chickpea, mung bean) plants irrigated with wastewater Cu (mg kg-1) 1.57
or supplemented with phosphatic fertilisers. The research area was P (mg kg-1) 18
divided into four plots (18.2 × 13.6 m2) where wheat (Triticum aestivum
L. cvs. Bhakkar-2002 and AS-2002), chickpea (Cicer arietinum L. cvs. Total metals (HNO3 and HClO4; 1:4)
Bittal-98 and Punjab-2000), maize (Zea mays L. cvs. Sahiwal-2002 and Cd (mg kg-1) 5.8
Monsanto 6525) and mung bean (Vigna radiata L. cvs. NIAB-92 and Zn (mg kg-1) 8.64
NIAB-2006) were sown in separate plots according to their respective Cu (mg kg-1) 69.6

growing seasons during 2006-07 and 2007-08.

The experiment used a split plot design with three replicates on
ECe, Electrical conductivity of saturated soil paste extract; OM, organic matter; SAR, Sodium
an area of land which had long been irrigated with city sewage at the adsorption ratio
Land Utilisation Farm, Uchkera, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad,
Pakistan. Seeds were sown at rates of 125, 60, 40 and 25 kg ha-1 for
wheat, chickpea, maize and mung bean, respectively. The physico- 2.3 Fertiliser Treatments
chemical characteristics of the soil (Table 1) were determined using
standard methods. Fertiliser rates were not based on soil P test values, but instead common
recommendations for NP fertiliser of normal soils were followed. Urea
(46% N) and DAP (46% P2O5 and 18% N) were used as a source of N
and P (Table 2) and metal input through DAP is given in Table 3.

174 175
2.4 Sewage Water Table 3: Total Metal Input (mg ha-1) through DAP Fertiliser Amendment

The chemical properties of city sewage used for irrigation are given
in Table 4. Total metal added to the soil through sewage irrigation for METAL INPUTS (mg ha-1)

crops is given in Table 5. The total volume of city sewage delivered to

each experimental unit was calculated in the open channel using the Crops Treatments Cd Zn Cu
Manning equation (Akgiray 2005): (16 mg kg-1 (313 mg kg-1 (42.6 mg kg-1
DAP) DAP) DAP)

Wheat and N1P0.5 1993 38671 5182

Q = A/n × R 2/3 × S 1/2 Maize N1P1.0 3986 77343 10365
N1P1.5 5980 115616 15548

where Q = Discharge (m3 s-1); A = Cross-sectional area (m2); Chickpea N1P0.5 956 19136 2392
n = Manning’s Roughness Coefficient (0.08); R = Hydraulic Radius (m) and N1P1.0 2033 38272 5182
and S = Slope of the channel (m/m) Mung bean N1P1.5 2974 57409 7853

Table 2: Fertiliser Treatments Applied to Each Crop

Contamination with pathogens (bacteria and viruses) is mostly
associated with domestic sewage. It is established that coliform
N AND P2O5 (kg ha-1) bacteria and helminth eggs should be ≤ 10 and ≤ 0.01 mL−1,
respectively. According to Ensink et al. (2004), for Faisalabad city
Treatment (F) Wheat Chickpea Maize Mung sewage, faecal coliform was 6.3 × 107 and > 1 × 108, and helminth
bean eggs were 100 and 763, respectively, and the sewage is a mixture of
domestic and industrial discharge, which has not been characterised
Control N0P0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 for its biological contamination.

Recommended N 1P 0 113-0 23-0 120-0 23-0

N+0.0 P
2.5 Plant Harvesting and Analysis
Recommended N1P0.5 113-57 23-28 120-57 23-28
N+0.5 P Crop plants were harvested at reproductive maturity. The
concentrations of Cd, Cu and Zn were determined via atomic
Recommended N1P1.0 113-113 23-58 120-113 23-58 absorption spectrophotometer (Thermo Electron AA, Solar-Series,
N+1.0 P Waltham, USA) following a di-acid (HNO3+HClO4; 3:1) digestion of
samples in triplicate (AOAC 1920), and phosphorus concentrations
Recommended N1P1.5 113-170 23-85 120-170 23-85 were determined using a UV-visible spectrophotometer (Thermo
N+1.5 P Electron, Waltham, USA), standardised with a series of standard
solutions supplied by the manufacturer.

176 177
Table 4: Selected Chemical Characteristics of Untreated Sewage 2.6 Statistical Analysis
Water Used for Crop Irrigation during this Study
Statistical analysis was carried out using the “Statistix 8.1” statistical
package using the least significant difference (LSD) test to compare
Parameter Range Mean* SD**
the means.
pH 7.3 - 7.9 7.47 0.17
EC (dS m-1) 2.64 - 3.13 2.95 0.18
TSS (mmolc L-1) 26.4 - 31.2 29.50 0.03

BOD (mg L-1) 4.0 - 988 - - 3. Results

COD (mg L-1) 42 - 2676 - -
Na+ (mmolc L-1) 16.5 - 27 21.75 3.45

K+ (mmolc L-1) 0.3 - 0.8 0.56 0.15 3.1 Plant Biomass Production
Ca2++Mg2+ (mmolc L-1) 3.2 - 7.4 6.15 1.26
HCO3- (mmolc L-1) 7.0 - 10.0 8.17 0.99
Both crop species and fertiliser treatments had a significant positive
Cl- (mmolc L-1) 5.7 - 13.0 11.0 2.39 (p < 0.05) effect on grain and straw yields for wheat (Table 6). Relative
SO42 - (mmolc L-1) 7.4 - 19 11.16 3.98
to the control (N0P0), all levels of P increased wheat yield, while the
SAR (mmol L-1)1/2 8.82 - 21.30 12.78 3.80
application of N alone decreased grain yield (4,937 kg ha-1). The highest
RSC (mmolc L-1) 0.6 - 6.80 2.05 1.90 grain (5,661 kg ha-1) and straw (7,801 kg ha-1) yields were recorded for
Cd (mg L-1) Traces - 0.002 0.001 0.01
Cr (mg L-1) 0.05 - 1.62 0.715 0.55
crop species BKR-02.
For maize, treatments had a significant (p < 0.05) influence on both
Cu (mg L-1) 0.001 - 0.026 0.01 0.01 grain and straw yields. The highest grain (3,031 kg ha-1) and straw
Ni (mg L-1) 0.03 - 1.25 0.471 0.38
Pb (mg L-1) 0.04 - 0.70 0.313 0.06 (8,370 kg ha-1) yields were obtained with treatment N1P1.5 and the
lowest yield was obtained in the control (N0P0).
Zn (mg L-1) 0.01 - 0.072 0.033 0.02
For mung bean, both fertiliser treatments and crop species positively
(p < 0.05) increased grain yield (Table 6) with NIAB-06 producing a
* (Average of six observations, n=6) ** SD= Standard deviation 5.2% higher grain yield (2,048 kg ha-1) than NIAB-92 (1,948 kg ha-1). All
EC, Electrical conductivity; TSS, Total Suspended Solids; SAR, Sodium adsorption ratio; RSC, Residual
sodium carbonate; BOD, Biological oxygen demand; COD, Chemical oxygen demand. P treatments increased grain yield.
For chickpea, fertilisers, crop species and their interactions had a
positive (p < 0.05) influence on grain and straw yields (Table 6). Bital-98
Table 5: Total Metal Input through Wastewater Irrigation
produced higher grain (2,243 kg ha-1) and straw (4,037 kg ha-1) yields
than P-2000.
Metal addition through wastewater (mg ha-1 Season-1)

Crops Cd Zn Cu 3.2 Plant Metal Concentrations

(0.002 mg L-1) (0.033 mg L-1) (0.01 mg L-1)

Wheat and Maize 914 21031 4571 Increasing rates of P combined with the recommended N dose (113 kg
ha-1) decreased tissue metal concentrations. The lowest metals were
Mung bean and 609 14020 3047
Chickpea accumulated in wheat variety AS-02, while the maize hybrid M-6525
accumulated more Cd and less Cu in all plant parts than S-02.

178 179
 2149±101ab

2213±170a

2296±102a
1924±43def
1773±21fg
NIAB-06

2211±40a

2144±25a

2313±59a
2249±71a
218±57ab
Metal concentrations in the tissues of legumes significantly (p < 0.05)

MUNG BEAN
decreased with increasing levels of P. Thus the highest concentrations

Values are means ± standard error (n=3); LSD values for grain and straw of wheat; 145, 201, maize; 62, 53, chickpea; 82.7, 135 and mung bean; 104, 245, respectively.
of Zn in plant tissue were recorded in the control and N1P0 for chickpea
and mung bean, respectively. NIAB-92 (mung bean) accumulated higher

2046±39bcd

2004±49cde
2071±31abc

1985±185a
2360±163a
2272±183a
2140±109a
1863±29efg
NIAB-92

1757±28g
Table 6: Effect of fertiliser treatments and crop species on biomass production (kg ha-1) of cereal and legume crops

2168±55a
amounts of metal compared with NIAB-06 (Tables 7, 8, 9) accumulating
2.6, 11.3 and 21.0% more Zn in the grain, straw and root, respectively
than NIAB-06.

4119±66bc
3.3 Plant P Concentrations

2192±40b

3455±56d

3123±76d
1754±23e

2073±46c

3960±27c

3255±47c
1607±35f
1541±48f
P-2000
Differences in P contents in wheat and maize varied significantly

CHICKPEA
(p < 0.05) with crop species, fertiliser treatments and their interactions
(Table 10). Relative to control, and to adding N alone, the application
of P fertiliser significantly increased plant P contents. With the

4385±115b

3083±157d
3973±242c
3907±144c
1926±35d
2445±13a
2365±35a
2405±35a

4837±53a
2073±23c
Bital-98
exception of P straw, crop species generally differed significantly in
their P contents. Relative to the control (N0P0), the application of N
alone (N1P0) enhanced P tissue content in maize plants but decreased
P tissue content in wheat plants.
The effect of fertiliser treatments, crop species and their interaction

8209±80bcd
8304±14abc
3221±62ab

8352±70ab
2936±25cd
were all significant (p  <  0.05) on P tissue contents in both legume

3162±37b

8067±21d
3299±15a

8370±50a
3016±13c
M-6520
species (Table 10). Relative to the control, the application of N alone
(N1P0) also significantly improved P tissue content in both legume
crops.

MAIZE

8202±46bcd
8288±43abc
8332±30abc
2678±52de
2764±15cd

8176±23cd
2358±34g

2631±40e

8388±67a
2491±57f
3.4 Translocation of Metals

S-02
The translocation factors (TF) of all measured metals (Cd, Cu and Zn)
was highest under treatment N1P0 and decreased with increasing P
levels (Table 11) for all plant species. The average TF decreased in the

5150±218cde
5010±146de

5236±105cd

7057±120b
6113±185c

6146±202c
5954±185c
5209±37cd
order mung bean (1.77) > chickpea (1.20) > wheat (1.14) > maize (1.03).

4784±23e

5887±82c
AS-02
WHEAT
3.5 Post-Harvest Soil Analysis

5914±133ab
5575±121bc
After harvesting all of the crops, soil analysis revealed that the

7382±207b
7203±188b
6007±182a

8372±150a
5090±58de

5721±53ab

7568±92b
8479±67a
BKR-02
application of P had resulted in increases in the AB-DTPA extractable
metal content (Cd, Cu and Zn) and P in soil corresponding to the level

Treatment
180
Grains

Straw
N1P0.5
N1P1.0
N1P1.5

N1P0.5
N1P1.0
N1P1.5
N 0P 0
N 1P 0

N 0P 0
N 1P 0
Table 7: Effect of fertiliser treatments and crop species on concentration of Cd (mg kg-1) in root, straw and grains of cereal and legume crops

WHEAT MAIZE CHICKPEA MUNG BEAN

Treatment BKR-02 AS-02 S-02 M-6520 Bital-98 P-2000 NIAB-92 NIAB-06

Grains
N 0P 0 0.046±0.003cd 0.042±0.003cd 0.110±0.006de 0.110±0.013a 0.140±0.006ab 0.130±0.015abc 0.041±0.006c 0.014±0.025a
N 1P 0 0.054±0.003bc 0.063±0.003cd 0.140±0.015cd 0.140±0.023a 0.130±0.003ab 0.150±0.012ab 0.073±0.015bc 0.050±0.012c
N1P0.5 0.056±0.000b 0.085±0.003a 0.150±0.009cde 0.150±0.011ab 0.150±0.012ab 0.160±0.026a 0.143±0.012a 0.053±0.009c
N1P1.0 0.064±0.003b 0.080±0.006a 0.140±0.020cde 0.140±0.014ab 0.150±0.007ab 0.120±0.007abc 0.133±0.007a 0.139±0.027ab
N1P1.5 0.035±0.003d 0.038±0.002d 0.090±0.009e 0.090±0.027bc 0.100±0.003c 0.110±0.015bc 0.133±0.003a 0.132±0.006a

Straw
N 0P 0 0.195±0.009bc 0.169±0.010cd 0.280±0.006abc 0.260±0.016bc 0.220±0.006c 0.400±0.006b 0.895±0.012bc 0.760±0.032c
N 1P 0 0.255±0.009abc 0.245±0.003ab 0.260±0.015a 0.260±0.013bc 0.250±0.003c 0.260±0.006b 0.911±0.096bc 0.875±0.062c
N1P0.5 0.289±0.015abc 0.235±0.012a 0.220±0.009cd 0.330±0.010bc 0.160±0.012a 0.180±0.006a 1.240±0.080a 1.105±0.058ab
N1P1.0 0.263±0.012a 0.271±0.018ab 0.220±0.020cd 0.290±0.037ab 0.120±0.007a 0.120±0.012a 0.425±0.069d 0.457±0.068d
N1P1.5 0.244±0.020d 0.157±0.044abc 0.191±0.009d 0.270±0.010bc 0.100±0.003a 0.100±0.012a 0.320±0.075d 0.326±0.061d

Root
N 0P 0 0.247±0.018def 0.208±0.015ef 0.770±0.028ab 0.870±0.076a 0.610±0.074g 0.420±0.103fg 0.608±0.053c 0.548±0.064c
N 1P 0 0.212±0.018f 0.273±0.005cde 0.570±0.007bc 0.890±0.151a 0.720±0.062ef 0.450±0.135de 1.086±0.066ab 0.730±0.080c
N1P0.5 0.286±0.031c 0.275±0.017cd 0.500±0.012ab 0.730±0.073ab 0.450±0.044d 0.410±0.090c 0.839±0.038bc 0.881±0.031bc
N1P1.0 0.631±0.024a 0.176±0.026g 4.460±0.018c 0.700±0.135abc 0.390±0.027bc 0.390±0.068ab 1.406±0.194bc 0.804±0.232c
N1P1.5 0.379±0.041b 0.139±0.066h 0.460±0.005c 0.550±0.074bc 0.250±0.021a 0.250±0.023abc 0.850±0.192a 0.542±0.065bc

Values are means ± standard error (n=3); LSD values for grain, straw and root of wheat; 0.005, 0.02, 0.03 maize; 0.02, 0.05, 0.07, Chickpea; 0.02, 0.035, 0.09 and
mung bean; 0.009, 0.20, 0.25, respectively.

Table 8: Effect of fertiliser treatments and crop species on concentrations of Zn (mg kg-1) in root, straw and grains of cereal and legume crops

WHEAT MAIZE CHICKPEA MUNG BEAN

Treatment BKR-02 AS-02 S-02 M-6520 Bital-98 P-2000 NIAB-92 NIAB-06

Grains
N 0P 0 40.90±0.59ab 45.10±0.50e 31.80±0.79a 27.70±1.24bc 39.30±1.18a 35.90±0.35ab 33.60±0.74a 32.90±0.66bcd
N 1P 0 42.00±0.53a 43.80±1.03de 34.10±1.13ab 26.60±0.76bc 38.10±0.87a 36.90±0.98ab 36.60±0.97abc 34.00±0.89ab
N1P0.5 39.60±0.67bc 39.30±0.47bcd 25.50±2.09cd 25.30±1.54cde 36.50±0.97ab 36.90±1.00bc 32.10±1.34bcd 31.40±0.46b-e
N1P1.0 37.80±0.47cde 36.80±0.25cde 23.00±2.03cde 24.40±0.45cde 34.30±1.32bc 34.10±1.21cd 31.30±0.88cde 29.40±1.50ef
N1P1.5 32.20±0.95e 34.50±0.38cde 20.30±2.22e 21.30±0.46de 29.70±0.64d 32.40±0.53d 30.50±0.32de 26.80±0.89f

Straw
N 0P 0 24.80±1.97fg 23.90±0.89g 28.60±1.03a 27.10±0.68bc 21.90±0.72e 25.50±1.03de 31.70±2.41a 26.90±1.17a
N 1P 0 28.90±1.30a 25.40±0.30b 30.80±0.84ab 25.90±0.94c 21.30±0.52e 23.50±0.45cd 32.60±1.19a 27.90±1.37a
N1P0.5 24.20±0.78bc 20.30±0.79def 21.40±0.47de 22.80±1.09d 24.70±0.75cd 30.20±0.45a 32.10±2.30a 29.50±1.30a
N1P1.0 22.50±0.29bcd 15.90±0.84g 20.30±0.67de 20.30±0.67de 25.50±0.92cd 28.60±1.00ab 31.50±1.74a 27.70±2.49a
N1P1.5 21.10±0.78bcd 13.70±0.42ef 19.10±1.03e 19.20±0.67e 26.50±0.65bc 28.50±0.58ab 33.30±0.96a 33.30±1.35a

Root
N 0P 0 46.30±1.70ab 39.20±1.45cd 22.90±1.01bc 21.60±0.98c 34.80±0.99ab 35.10±2.71a 22.70±3.17ab 18.80±0.62ab
N 1P 0 46.30±1.15ab 41.30±1.23bcd 25.50±0.78ab 22.80±0.49bc 33.20±1.31ab 30.30±0.84bc 20.70±0.92ab 18.40±1.93ab
N1P0.5 46.90±2.22ab 49.00±4.74a 26.30±0.23a 25.40±1.14ab 32.00±0.46ab 27.20±0.51cde 23.70±3.02a 17.10±1.67b
N1P1.0 40.10±0.92cd 42.40±0.72bc 24.80±0.52ab 24.90±0.95ab 26.80±1.98cde 24.40±1.12de 23.20±2.34ab 19.10±1.71ab
N1P1.5 35.70±1.63de 31.90±1.81e 23.80±0.47abc 24.60±1.27ab 27.20±0.79cd 22.90±1.32e 22.20±2.03ab 18.50±0.95ab

Values are means ± standard error (n=3); LSD values for grain, straw and root of wheat; 2.2, 1.6, 2.1, maize; 1.92, 1.45, 1.72, Chickpea; 1.34, 1.45, 1.54 and
mung bean; 1.52, 1.80, 1.62, respectively.
Table 9: Effect of fertiliser treatments and crop species on concentrations of Cu (mg kg-1) in root, straw and grains of cereal and legume crops

WHEAT MAIZE CHICKPEA MUNG BEAN

Treatment BKR-02 AS-02 S-02 M-6520 Bital-98 P-2000 NIAB-92 NIAB-06

Grains
N 0P 0 4.60±0.10b 4.70±0.15a 2.46±0.09a 1.91±0.09b 5.40±0.77a 5.10±0.16a 9.44±0.19c 5.84±0.24a
N 1P 0 4.70±0.23b 5.30±0.12b 2.39±0.06a 1.86±0.07b 5.40±0.70a 5.10±0.15a 9.34±0.35c 5.59±0.32a
N1P0.5 4.20±0.09cd 4.40±0.06bc 2.36±0.07a 1.68±0.09bc 4.50±0.20ab 4.40±0.16ab 8.50±0.15c 5.77±0.51ab
N1P1.0 4.10±0.12cde 4.00±0.15cde 1.31±0.17d 1.54±0.07cd 3.60±0.23bc 3.80±0.18bc 7.83±0.47c 5.57±0.22b
N1P1.5 3.80±0.12de 3.70±0.09e 1.09±0.09e 1.33±0.02d 2.40±0.62c 2.70±0.23c 7.28±0.22c 5.65±0.26b

Straw
N 0P 0 5.40±0.23b 5.20±0.18b 4.63±0.19a 3.64±0.50c 4.73±0.41a 3.52±0.57a 10.40±0.15ab 9.96±0.58abc
N 1P 0 6.40±0.55ab 5.40±0.50b 4.28±0.21abc 3.54±0.31c 4.23±0.19a 3.58±0.10a 9.19±0.42bc 9.23±0.88bc
N1P0.5 6.40±0.18ab 7.10±0.64a 4.56±0.17ab 3.70±0.23c 3.87±0.54a 3.46±0.10a 11.54±0.32a 9.45±0.90abc
N1P1.0 6.20±0.38ab 6.03±0.18ab 4.29±0.20abc 3.71±0.20c 3.97±0.41a 3.34±0.11a 10.41±0.43ab 8.97±0.82bc
N1P1.5 6.10±0.26ab 5.90±0.44ab 4.01±0.20abc 3.75±0.15bc 4.27±0.27a 3.22±0.02a 10.31±0.35ab 8.03±0.84c

Root
N 0P 0 14.10±0.29ab 10.10±0.32c 14.08±0.78a 12.23±1.09abc 11.30±1.92ab 12.40±0.74ab 11.79±0.09ab 11.93±0.39ab
N 1P 0 14.80±0.62a 12.30±1.16bc 12.23±0.34bcd 11.83±0.55abc 11.80±1.07ab 13.10±0.90ab 12.59±0.32a 11.78±0.70ab
N1P0.5 11.10±1.45c 11.00±1.60c 12.71±0.44ab 12.90±1.44a-d 10.60±1.33abc 11.70±0.23b 11.89±0.67b 11.22±1.35ab
N1P1.0 11.00±0.85c 10.10±0.62c 10.39±0.87cd 9.53±1.27bcd 9.10±0.45bc 11.20±0.62ab 10.86±0.73ab 10.53±0.66ab
N1P1.5 9.20±0.32c 9.00±0.40c 9.20±0.28d 8.68±1.52d 9.20±1.33bc 7.20±1.16c 10.47±0.32a 10.31±0.66ab

Values are means ± standard error (n=3); LSD values of grain, straw and root of wheat; 0.15, 0.5, 1.2, maize; 0.22, 0.58, 1.35, chickpea; 0.29, 0.43, 1.07 and
mung bean; 1.85, 1.15, 1.47, respectively.

Table 10: Effect of fertiliser treatments and crop species on concentrations of P (mg kg-1) in root, straw and grains of cereal and legume crops

WHEAT MAIZE CHICKPEA MUNG BEAN

Treatment BKR-02 AS-02 S-02 M-6520 Bital-98 P-2000 NIAB-92 NIAB-06

Grains
N 0P 0 3554±17b 3484±17b 3794±31e 4091±83c 3890±17d 4343±06f 4691±13e 4588±14f
N 1P 0 3548±36b 3438±34b 3785±23e 4074±21bc 4064±24c 4566±33e 4858±26d 4662±23e
N1P0.5 3904±40a 3954±55a 3853±47de 4224±42ab 4351±39b 4869±22d 5019±17a 4878±12cd
N1P1.0 3881±36a 3821±43a 3959±55cd 4319±50a 4525±20a 5053±22c 5031±16a 4917±13bc
N1P1.5 3826±27a 3825±87a 3961±26cd 4330±23a 4568±16a 5135±39c 5045±08a 4949±23b

Straw
N 0P 0 803±9e 784±13e 1198±25de 1368±36e 2975±18c 3163±16b 3580±21def 3390±19f
N 1P 0 774±15e 917±15d 1518±41cd 1485±111cd 2915±12c 3136±84b 3508±42ef 3460±32f
N1P0.5 1409±18a 1043±17c 1627±38c 1585±25c 3336±9a 3352±10a 3819±28b-e 3669±16c-e
N1P1.0 1380±16a 986±29cd 1955±36b 1927±45b 3423±12a 3408±30a 4031±25b 3883±18bcd
N1P1.5 1310±60b 998±27c 1939±9a 2149±33b 3427±19a 3431±26a 4095±13a 3905±24bc

Root
N 0P 0 1296±13d 1141±11f 1253±46d 1337±35bcd 1695±08g 1737±43fg 1745±25f 1646±23h
N 1P 0 1009±17g 993±14g 1303±10cd 1467±37bc 1844±27ef 1889±32de 1781±51e 1680±38g
N1P0.5 1642±16a 1355±13c 1363±137bcd 1537±29b 1970±09d 2141±34c 1900±33c 1781±19e
N1P1.0 1531±24b 1268±24de 1483±99bc 1825±53a 2143±71bc 2248±19ab 2005±31b 1885±21d
N1P1.5 1351±14c 1228±18e 1781±70a 1935±71a 2258±30a 2199±27abc 2037±15a 1896±14c

Values are means ± standard error (n=3); LSD values of grain, straw and root of wheat; 35.3, 44.3, 23.7 maize; 85, 92, 175, chickpea; 57, 62.2, 92.5 and mung bean; 42, 58, 315, respectively.
 NIAB-06

1.16
1.41
1.31
0.74
0.85

3.01
3.26
3.14
2.73
2.52

1.30
1.38
1.36
1.25
1.11
MUNG BEAN
of P applied (Figure 1). While AB-DTPA extractable Cu and Zn increased
slightly with P, the increases were not significant (P>0.05). In contrast,
the availability of both Cd and P significantly increased with increasing

NIAB-92
P levels in the soil. As with Cu and Zn, while pH increased slightly with

0.91
1.52
1.61
0.53
0.40

2.88
3.04
2.71
2.69
2.50

1.47
1.68
1.63
1.51
1.37
added P, the differences were not significant and when compared with
the control treatment, decreased with N application alone (N1P0).

P-2000

0.91
1.26
0.83
0.62
0.70

2.47
2.69
2.57
2.22
2.02

0.65
0.82
0.69
0.64
0.61
4. Discussion

CHICKPEA
Grain yields for all crops increased with the increasing application of
the DAP fertiliser together with the recommended doses of nitrogen

Bital-98
(Table 7). However, biomass was decreased by adding a combination

Table 11: Metal translocation factors (TF) for four crop species and two varieties per species

0.59
0.80
0.69
0.69
0.53

1.76
1.79
1.95
1.83
1.75

0.82
0.90
0.83
0.79
0.71
of N and P, which could be due to the addition of metals by P fertiliser
and some consequential phytotoxicity.
While an increase in crop yield is expected following fertiliser
application, due to the beneficial effects of applied nutrients on plant

M-6520
growth and metabolism, the extent of any increase depends on the plant

0.57
0.84
0.76
0.71
0.58

2.04
2.12
1.89
1.80
1.60

0.45
0.63
0.59
0.55
0.42
species and/or the specific variety cropped (Nuruzzaman et al. 2006).
The application of P promotes root development, photosynthesis, and

MAIZE
crop maturity, induces plant disease resistance, and enhances water
use efficiency, N fixation, translocation of sugar, and therefore crop
yield (Guan et al. 2013). The application of half the recommended dose

S-02

0.51
0.70
0.74
0.80
0.61

2.15
2.24
1.78
1.75
1.55

0.50
0.58
0.54
0.52
0.43
of P, as practiced by farmers, seems to be an economical option for
the production of cereal and legume crops on sewage-irrigated soils.
The observed decrease in biomass yield due to N application alone
(N1P0) could be due to a combination of elevated metal uptake, the
consequential phytotoxicity of these metals, as well as an innate P

AS-02

1.01
1.33
1.59
1.12
1.06

1.76
1.68
1.51
1.15
1.07

0.98
1.17
1.05
0.99
0.87
deficiency in these calcareous soils (Siebers et al. 2014). The highest
levels of grain Cd for wheat and chickpea were recorded with N1P1.0,

WHEAT
and with N1P0.5 for maize and mung bean whilst the lowest levels were
recorded with N1P1.5 (Table 7). At the highest P application rate the

BKR-02
biomass yield was also lowered, which undoubtedly decreased metal

0.98
1.46
1.21
0.74
0.52

1.42
1.53
1.36
1.22
1.09

0.71
1.08
0.95
0.94
0.75
uptake and tissue accumulation to some extent. With higher levels of
P, different processes could become more dominant for transforming
readily available metals into less available species. With low levels of
metals, it seems that plant processes control the metal uptake while at

Treatment
high levels soil reactions were mainly responsible for the uptake of metals.

N1P0.5
N1P1.0
N1P1.5

N1P0.5
N1P1.0
N1P1.5

N1P0.5
N1P1.0
N1P1.5
N 0P 0
N 1P 0

N 0P 0
N 1P 0

N 0P 0
N 1P 0
186
Metal

Cd

Cu
Zn
 translocation from the roots to shoots or promoting the capability of
the soil or its constituents to adsorb or precipitate Cd (Mar et al. 2012).
Antagonistic interactions between P and Zn are often significant in
soil-plant systems, especially when only one of them (either P or Zn)
is applied through a fertiliser amendment (Lambert et al. 2007). The
interactions between the two elements are complex because while P
interferes with Zn uptake. P also increases plant yield and thus causes
sorption sites in the soil dilution of Zn tissue concentrations. P-induced
increases in crop yield may also improve the ability of the crop to remove
Zn from the soil, by increasing root growth or enhancing mass flow and
transpiration (Lambert et al. 2007). Increased Cd desorption from the
soil could increase the phyto-availability of Cd, leading to increased
competition between Zn and Cd for plant uptake and translocation by
the plant (Grant et al. 1998). Thus the interactions between Zn, Cd
and P may have a significant effect on their overall accumulation in
plant tissues (Imtiaz et al. 2006). Likewise, sorption sites in the soil
application of both P and Zn may also interact to reduce Cu tissue
content, which is believed to occur at the site of absorption possibly
with Cu precipitation at the root surface (Fageria et al. 2001).
Figure 1: Effect of fertiliser treatments on post-harvest AB-DTPA extractable Cd, Zn, Cu, P and pH in soil
Nitrogen treatment alone increased the tissue concentration of all
tested metals (Cd, Cu and Zn) because this treatment substantially
The increased tissue accumulation of Cd at low levels may be decreased soil pH (Figure 1) and is also known to influence rhizosphere
due to ion exchange reactions with Cd and competing ions from the composition, microbial activity and root growth (Wangstrand et al.
fertiliser at sorption sites in the soil or by soil acidification (Grant 2011). 2007). Ammonium-based fertilisers (urea; NH4-N) have increased
It is well documented that phosphate reduces soil solution Cd and its the phyto-availability of metals more than nitrate fertilisers due to
mobility by forming metal precipitate with low solubility products such a reduction in soil pH, possibly due to nitrification, plant uptake of
as Cd2PO3, Cd3(PO4)2, Cd(OH)2 or CdCO3, which tend to be recalcitrant NH4+ and H+ extrusion through roots, thus causing an increase in
and generally unavailable to plants (Huang et al. 2012). hydrogen ion (H+) levels in the soil (Avci and Deveci 2013). Mean Cd
Reduced tissue Cd may also be due to P induced sorption of Cd in concentrations increased in the order of maize > chickpea > mung
the soil (Siebers et al. 2014), increased surface charge, or co-adsorption bean > wheat while Cu accumulation patterns were in the order mung
of P and Cd as an ion pair (Grant 2011). bean > wheat > chickpea > maize, and those of Zn were wheat >
The immobilization of metal at very high rates of P, normally chickpea > mung bean > maize. Since mung bean and maize were
above those used for crop produc-tion, could be due to P-induced sown in summer, high concentrations of Cd may in part be due to
metal adsorption and/or precipitation/co-precipitation (Grant 2011). high evapotranspiration (Prasad 2004). These differences in metal
Decreases in Cd concentrations in plants following sorption sites in accumulation could be due to both morphological and genetic
the soil application of P fertilisers have also been reported recently differences between species and varieties (Nuruzzaman et al. 2006).
by several other research groups (Huang et al. 2012). In most of these Many plant species increase root formation and exudation of a number
studies, the reduction in Cd phyto-availability could be related to high of moieties, such as citrate and malate, as a mechanism for increasing
P availability, which decreases Cd uptake by either interfering with Cd P availability (Jones and Oburger 2011).

188 189
 Wheat, chickpea, mung bean and maize grains respectively accumulated 6. Future Recommendations
4.8, 3.3, 7.7 and 3.76 times less Cd than roots and 3.8, 1.3, 7.0 and 1.5
times lower Cd than straw. The highest metal concentrations were always Background knowledge of the factors affecting the mobility, availability,
found in the plant roots irrespective of the species. A number of factors bioaccumulation and mechanisms of heavy metal uptake by cereals and
including anatomical, biochemical and physiological may contribute to legumes need to be elucidated due to difference in their physiology
metal accumulation and distribution in the upper vegetative parts. Since and root morphologies. Previous studies have also shown that heavy
metals here were mainly restricted to the roots, this suggests that binding metals can be translocated to the grain/seeds via different tissues
by negative charges of conducting tissues, pectic sites and hystidyl groups (Murtaza et al. 2015; Murtaza et al. 2016). However, information on
of cell walls (Hall 2002) may be important and that upward movement may their dynamics still requires further research, especially in important
be related to saturation kinetics. Some metal binding protein in roots was legume and cereals crops.
also considered responsible for restriction (Lux et al. 2011).
There seems to be no national policy in effect on the sustainable use 1. The high quantity of beneficial metals (Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, and
of wastewater in Pakistan. Laws and regulations have been formulated Zn) in the harvested biomass (cereals and legumes) can be “diluted”
about the treatment and disposal of wastewater in the country but to acceptable levels by combining contaminated biomass with
their implementation due to a lack of resources and skilled manpower clean matter (free of metals) in formulations of fertiliser and fodder.
is the real issue. The result is that, while an appropriate and necessary 2. The in situ chemical immobilisation of heavy metals is not only a
administrative capacity exists on paper, its effectiveness is seriously cost-effective remediation strategy, which stabilises heavy metals in
curtailed in practice due to these shortcomings. An environmental impact contaminated soil, but can also improve soil fertility, and ultimately
assessment (EIA) system is mandatory but seldom followed in the public increase plant growth. Organic amendments (compost) contain a
sector, and environmental laboratories have been established in all high proportion of humified organic matter and could decrease
provinces but function with skeletal staff and budgets inadequate even heavy metal bioavailability in soil due to having a large surface area
for their routine equipment and chemical needs. Similarly, environmental and thus provide strong adsorption sites, even though temporally,
tribunals have been created but their capacity to deal with reported thus allowing vegetation to re-establish.
cases is extremely restricted, as minimal personnel have been deputed 3. The role of NPK fertilisers and organic amendments like farm manure
in only two provinces to collectively oversee the entire country. or inorganic additives like lime, gypsum, zeolites and Fe oxides
were found to be effective in decreasing the transfer of metals into
crops. Most of these materials are easily available in large amounts
and their incorporation into the soil is easy if the contamination
5. Conclusion is restricted to topsoil. However, repeated application may be
necessary and the effectiveness is largely dependent on soil
While DAP fertilisers are a considerable source of added metals to conditions and has to be proved periodically.
agricultural soils, the application of P at all levels was effective in 4. Further effective methods to reduce metal transfer into the
decreasing the phyto-availability of three metals (Cd, Cu and Zn) present food chain include crop rotation and the cultivation of industrial
in calcareous soils irrigated with city waste. The most economically or bio-energy crops. The selection of crops under a sewage-
viable option for reducing metal toxicity in crops involved using only irrigated agriculture system needs further investigations for final
half of the recommended dose of P fertiliser. While this study was recommendations to be given to growers.
restricted to four plant species, these initial findings may have wide 5. The treatment of industrial/civic water through the coupling of
applications for the safer crop production of monocot species grown physical, chemical and biological processes for the safe use of
on untreated soils irrigated with city sewage. wastewater, along with strict legislation and awareness at a national

190 191
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(HEC), Pakistan, for their financial support. We also recognise Dr.
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processes and management for improving nutrient use efficiency and crop productivity:
implications for China.” Advances in Agronomy 107:1–32. ISSUES

194
CASE 11
Government Supported Farmers Utilising
Wastewater in Irrigation: The Case of the South
African Government in Lebowakgomo in the
Limpopo Province Supporting Farmers Producing
Vegetables (South Africa)

T. Gomo 1

Abstract

In the face of dwindling fresh water resources, wastewater has been

used to enhance food production through irrigation. Governments
across the world have developed and implemented policies that
promote the safe reuse of wastewater, but in developing countries, the
lack of resources has hindered the implementation of these policies. In
South Africa, the government has provided for the safe discharge of
effluent into water sources (National Water Act 36 of 1998) and has also
published guidelines and policies that support the reuse of wastewater
in irrigation (Government Gazette 36820, Notice 665, September 6,
2013). This study, which is still in progress, is assessing the effort of
the Government through its various departments in promoting the
safe reuse of wastewater along the Chuenes River. The Lebowakgomo
waste-treatment plant deposits treated wastewater into the Chuenes
River. Three farmers along the Chuenes River who have received
assistance from government departments have so far been included in

1
T. Gomo 
Department of Agriculture & Rural Development, Engineering Services P. Bag X028
Chuenespoort, 0745, South Africa; e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

197
this study. The preliminary results show the sewerage treatment plant 2. Government Support in Wastewater Reuse in
is operating at 200% of its capacity and does not test the quality of the
Agriculture
water released into the river. The farmers are not registered to use the
wastewater as required by law and the community does not support
the farmers that want to use the wastewater. There is legislation that The South African government has taken various steps to support
governs the reuse of wastewater but it is not being enforced. farmers who use wastewater for irrigation. The National Water Act 36 of
Keywords: wastewater in irrigation, government support, community 1998 addressed a number of grey areas that had been existent before
education independence on the rights of farmers to use water. This included
smallholder farmers in small towns. The Act also sought to regulate
the discharge of wastewater into clean water resources and the use of
wastewater in food production in Section 37 (1) a.
1. Introduction As a result of this section of the Act, the government has been able
to gazette regulations pertaining the use of wastewater for irrigation,
Water for food production is increasingly becoming scarcer owing to the most recent being Government Notice 665 in Government
increased demand from other uses such as domestic, industrial and Gazette 36820, dated September 6, 2013. Through such regulations
environmental users (Perry 2005, Gomo et al 2014), which give higher and policies, the government has assisted in ensuring that the quality
economic and social returns. This has in most instances forced farmers, of treated water discharge into water resources and the reuse of
particularly in the peri-urban locations, to utilise wastewater from large wastewater in irrigation is controlled. Table 1 below shows quality of
cities and towns around the world for irrigation. However, in developing wastewater allowed to be used in irrigation per day.
countries where resources are not available for the adequate treatment The South African government has also requested the registration of
of wastewater, there are greater health risks in the use of wastewater. any farmer using wastewater and the keeping of records on the quantity,
Some governments in developing countries have developed policies and measured weekly, and the quality on a monthly basis. Each wastewater
started to implement guidelines that promote the safe use of wastewater user should be registered with a regulating authority in the area where
for irrigation. The problem, however, has been the enforcement of these they intend to irrigate, and should receive a certificate. Irrigation with
policies and regulations mainly owing to a lack of resources. wastewater should not be above identified major aquifers and should
This has been the case in South Africa, where wastewater is deposited at least have the following boundaries (RSA Government Notice 665 in
back into rivers and streams and is then abstracted by different farmers Government Gazette 36820, September 6, 2013):
downstream to produce food. A case in point is the Chuenespoort
River in Lebowakgomo in the Limpopo Province. • At least 50 m above the 1 in 100 year flood line or riparian habitat
This case documents the efforts that the government of South Africa whichever is the greatest, or alternatively at least 100 m from a water
has made in supporting farmers in using wastewater for irrigation and course whichever is the greatest, or at least further than 500 m radius
focuses on Lebowakgomo and the surrounding farmers. The study is from a borehole that is utilised for drinking water or stock watering;
still in progress, and as such only provides preliminary results. • On land that is not, or does not, overlie a major aquifer; and
• Outside at least a 500 m radius from the boundary of a wetland.

The government has also put in place legislation that ensures that all
wastewater treatment plants are registered and the quality of water
discharged into water resources is monitored on a weekly basis. The
siting and location of any wastewater treatment plant is also regulated

198 199
Table 1: Quality of Wastewater to be Used for Irrigation in South Africa

through legislation. When treated wastewater is to be discharged into

VARIABLES LIMITS PER DAY
a water resource, general and special limits have been set as shown in
Table 2 below.
50 m3 500 m3 2,000 m3 With these policies and regulations, and others that have not been
described here, the Government of South Africa has been able to
pH not less than 6 or not less than 6 or not less than 5.5 or help farmers that are using wastewater for irrigation to some extent.
more than 9 pH more than 9 pH more than 9.5 pH units
units units
However, despite all these good policies and financial support the
government has provided to these farmers, enforcement has been
Electrical not exceed 200 not exceed 200 does not exceed 70 elusive mainly due to a lack of resources and skills. A case in point are
Conductivity milliSiemens per milliSiemens per milliSiemens above the farmers along the Chuenes River in Lebowakgomo.
meter (mS/m) meter (mS/m) intake to a maximum
of 150 milliSiemens per
meter (mS/m)

Suspended does not exceed

Solids 25 mg/I
3. Study Site
Chloride as does not exceed Lebowakgomo is a small town located ±50 km to the south-east of
Free Chlorine 0.25 mg/I
Polokwane, the provincial capital of the Limpopo Province of South
Fluoride does not exceed 1 mg/I Africa. The town is in Lepelle-Nkumpi local municipality and has a
human population of around 35,000 (SA population statistics, 2012).
Soap, Oil and does not exceed The geographical location of the town is 24°15’30.76”S, 29°38’59.7”E.
Grease 2.5 mg/I

Chemical does not exceed does not exceed does not exceed
Oxygen 5,000 mg/I after 400 mg/I after 75 mg/I
Demand removal of algae removal of algae;

Fecal coliforms do not exceed do not exceed do not exceed 1,000

100,000 per 100 ml 100,000 per 100 ml per 100 ml

Ammonia does not exceed 3 mg/I

(ionised and
un-ionised) as
Nitrogen

Nitrate/Nitrite does not exceed

as Nitrogen 15 mg/I

Ortho- does not exceed

Phosphate as 10 mg/I
phosphorous

Sodiu does not exceed 5 does not exceed 5

Adsorption for biodegradable for biodegradable
Rate (SAR) industrial waste- industrial waste-
Figure 1: Location of Lebowakgomo in South Africa
water water

Source: Government Gazette 36820, September 2006

201
Table 2: General and Limits for the Discharge of Treated Wastewater into a Water
Resource in South Africa
The Chuenes River is a small perennial river that runs from the
mountains around Chuenespoort dam, passes through Lebowakgomo
SUBSTANCE/PARAMETER GENERAL LIMIT SPECIAL LIMIT and feeds into the Oliphants River. When the river passes through
Lebowakgomo, some treated wastewater from the small town`s
Faecal Coliforms (per 100 ml) 1,000 0
treatment plant is deposited. Farmers extract water along the way on
Chemical Oxygen Demand (mg/I) 75 (i) 30(i) a section of the river before and after the discharge of wastewater into
the river. The wastewater treated at the plant is mainly from domestic
pH 5.5-9.5 5.5-7.5 uses and could probably be a factor in maintaining its perennial status.
Ammonia (ionised and un-ionised) as 6 2
Nitrogen (mg/I)
3.1 The Lebowakgomo Waste Treatment Plant
Nitrate/Nitrite as Nitrogen (mg/I) 15 1.5

Chlorine as Free Chlorine (mg/I) 0.25 0 The plant is located on the outskirts of the Lebowakgomo town. The
design capacity of the plant is 90 mega litres (ML) per month but is
Suspended Solids (mg/I) 25 10
currently operating at between 180-270 ML per month. The scheme
Electrical Conductivity (mS/m) 70 mS/m above in- 50 mS/m above back- caters for sections A, P, Q and S of the residential areas. Other sections
take to a maximum ground receiving water, to F and B are catered for by the oxidation dams and a wetland on another
of 150 mS/m a maximum of 100 mS/m treatment plant which discharges into an artificial wetland.
Ortho-Phosphate as phosphorous (mg/I) 10 1 (median) and 2.5 (max-
The plant receives waste through an underground pipeline system,
imum) and upon arrival the waste is screened to remove solids. The solids are
manually removed and buried within the plant premises. The volume of
Fluoride (mg/I) 1 1
wastewater is then measured through a V-notch weir, shown in Figure
Soap, oil or grease (mg/I) 2.5 0 2, as it proceeds to the activated sludge tank.

Dissolved Arsenic (mg/I) 0.02 0.01

Dissolved Cadmium (mg/I) 0.005 0.001

Dissolved Chromium (VI) (mg/I) 0.05 0.02

Dissolved Copper (mg/I) 0.01 0.002

Dissolved Cyanide (mg/I) 0.02 0.01

Dissolved Iron (mg/I) 0.3 0.3

Dissolved Lead (mg/I) 0.01 0.006

Dissolved Manganese (mg/I) 0.1 0.1

Mercury and its compounds (mg/I) 0.005 0.001

Figure 2: Physical screening of solid waste and V-notch weir at Lebowakgomo wastewater
Dissolved Selenium (mg/I) 0.02 0.02 treatment plant

Dissolved Zinc (mg/I) 0.1 0.04

Boron (mg/I) 1 0.5

203

Source: Government Gazette 36820, September 2006

 After the activated sludge process, the wastewater flows to the produce. Some are aware that the water is from the wastewater
clarifier where solids are allowed to settle and the liquid flows to the treatment plant while others shun the vegetables because people have
chlorination tank. Chlorine is added to the water before it is released committed suicide along that river stretch. Some villagers have even
into the Chuenes River. The quality of the water is currently not checked approached the farmer to warn him against that water.
after treatment. As a result, the farmer has reduced production because he is afraid
After the water has been released into the river, several farmers use of the community and in some instances his equipment has been
the water to irrigate downstream. Three farmers who have received vandalised. The farmer has also drilled a borehole to supplement the
support from the government have been selected for this study and water and during instances when he is not using the water from the river
interviewed. These farmers mainly produce vegetables for the local due to community issues. Figure 3 below shows the Chuenes plot with
communities and the Lebowakgomo town with the aim, however, of a small vegetable shop on site and part of the Chuenes River where the
producing for the larger city of Polokwane 50 km away. farmer abstracts water using a portable system laid over the ground.

3.2 Supported Farmers

The three farmers selected are the Chuene plot, Sekonya Agricultural
Research Project plot, and Mohla Agricultural Primary Co-operative
owning and producing vegetables on 2, 4 and 3 hectares, respectively.
The support that the government has provided to these farmers
includes the provision of irrigation infrastructure such as fencing, tanks
and pipes, and agricultural extension services. The extent of other
support is yet to be verified in this on-going study.

3.2.1 Chuene Plot

The Chuene plot is a 2 ha plot along the Chuenes River producing

vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, and spinach. The produce is sold
to the local market in Lebowakgomo town about 8 km away and the
surrounding Mamaolo community.
The farmer has received support from the government for fencing Figure 3: Chuene Plot
his plot, getting seeds, and receiving extension services from the
government through the Department of Agriculture. The farmer is
aware that the water from the river is wastewater but still opts to use 3.2.2 Sekonya Agricultural Research Project plot
it due to the easy availability of that water. The farmer is not willing to
register as a water user to avoid paying for that water, however he is Sekonya Agricultural Research project plot is a 3 ha plot that produces
aware that he needs to register but not sure which offices to approach. vegetables under drip. The farmer uses the water from the Chuenes
The farmer has been facing challenges with the Mamaolo community River and pumps it into a 60,000 L steel storage tank provided by
not willing to buy his produce as they have perceptions about the the government through the Department of Rural Development.

204 205
The farmer then irrigates using a drip irrigation system producing Lebowakgomo town. The effects of the community’s actions have seen
crops including tomatoes, spinach and cabbages intended for the a reduction in production at the plot. Figure 5 below shows some of the
Lebowakgomo market. vegetables at Mohla plot.
The farmer is aware that the water he is using is wastewater but
because it is readily available and cheap, he uses it for production. The
farmer is not a registered water user despite legislation requiring that
he becomes registered. Figure 4 below shows part of the farm and the
infrastructure that was provided by the government.

Figure 5: Mohla Agricultural Primary Co-operative plot

4. Conclusion

It should be noted that this is an ongoing study and the conclusions

Figure 4: Sekonya Agricultural Research Project plot
are only preliminary. A full study report will have firm conclusions.
It is concluded in this study that the government of South Africa
The farmer has also encountered problems with the community not
acknowledges the importance of wastewater and has put in place
supporting his project owing to the use of wastewater. This has caused
policies to support the safe use of wastewater in food production. The
a reduction in production at the farm.
government is also assisting farmers who want to utilise wastewater for
food production but due to a lack of resources the policies have not
been enforced.
3.2.3 Mohla Agricultural Primary Co-operative Plot
Farmers are using the wastewater because it is readily available and
cheap, but are not registered as requested by law probably because
The Mohla plot is located about 12 km from Lebowakgomo town
they do not want to pay for the water. The farmers are aware that they
along the Chuenes River. The co-operative is run by three members
should register as water users. The wastewater treatment plant does
of the Malemang community. The cooperative has received support
not have the capacity to test the quality of the water that it discharges
from the government in the form of irrigation equipment, training and
into the Chuenes River.
agricultural extension services as well as production inputs. The main
All the farmers along the Chuenes River are facing similar problems
vegetables that they produce are spinach, butternuts, green pepper
with communities that are not supportive of the use wastewater in food
and carrots for the Lebowakgomo market.
production. More may need to be done to educate the community on
The farmers use sprinkler and furrow irrigation methods with water
use of wastewater in food production.
from the Chuenes River. The farmers are aware that it is wastewater
but are not registered as water users. The Malemang community has
also been causing problems over the usage of the wastewater, in some
instances opting to buy vegetables from the larger supermarkets in

206 207
References
CASE 12
Gomo T., Senzanje A., Mudhara M. and Dhavu K. 2014. “Assessing the performance of
smallholder irrigation and deriving best management practices in South Africa.” Irrigation
and Drainage Systems 63:419–429. Challenges in Implementing Standards for Reuse
Perry C. 2005. “Irrigation reliability and the productivity of water: A proposed methodology
of Treated Wastewater in Irrigation: The Case of
using evapotranspiration mapping.” Irrigation and Drainage Systems 19:211–221. Bolivia (Bolivia)
South African Government. 1998. “The National Water Act 36 of 1998.”
Juan Carlos Rocha Cuadros 1
South African Government. 2013. “Government Notice 665 in Government Gazette
36820, 6 September 2013.”

South Africa Statistics. 2012. “Population of South Africa.”

Abstract

This study is based on the work sponsored by PROAGUAS - COTRIMEX

to establish regulations for the reuse of treated wastewater and looks
at the stages of studying laws and regulations in force, the control
parameters proposal, the relationship with World Health Organization
(WHO) guidelines and the sustainability of applying the regulations via
the implementation of subsidies to the irrigation system as a whole.
Reference is made to the difficulties encountered at all the stages
mentioned and the proposals that have been made to overcome them
and reach the stage of formulating the regulations.
Keywords: reuse of treated wastewater, Bolivia, implementation of
standards, irrigation, sustainability

1. Introduction

For many years now, there have been efforts in Bolivia to create an
irrigated agricultural area that could somehow be sufficient to provide
food for the country’s population. In this context, various cooperation

1
Juan Carlos Rocha Cuadros 
University of San Simon, Cochabamba, Bolivia; e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016
Translated from Spanish to English

208 209
agencies have invested resources to establish a professional basis for • Thirty-one of the 84 WWTPs do not work due to problems operating
managing the technical aspect of irrigation, especially in medium-sized and maintaining them
and large irrigation projects, and simultaneously to set up offices to • Of the remaining 53 WWTPs, the efficiency of the treatment is
support the implementation of irrigation projects from a corporate less than 50 per cent, which means that they are not suitable for
point of view. irrigation
As part of this task, construction work has been carried out on • All the effluents are used for irrigating vegetables
Bolivia’s irrigation infrastructure and to give a complete picture of the
situation regarding irrigation there are several publications including The use of treated or untreated sewage for irrigation prompted the
“Systematisation of treatment and reuse of wastewater”. formation of a joint committee, consisting of ministries and departments
During the course of the construction work, it was noted that another of the state concerned with the matter, as well as international
type of irrigation was being used, which did not have purpose-built cooperation. Together they managed to create a plan with four strategic
head works, particularly in the Andean region of Bolivia, where water is lines of action:
a naturally scarce resource. This adds the task of identifying populations
who were using sewage, either treated or untreated, for irrigation, • Training strategies
having arrived at the conclusion that the majority of the populations • Regulatory framework strategies
experiencing water scarcity use untreated sewage in municipalities with • Funding strategies
a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) that does not function properly • Communication strategies
due to lack of maintenance, and therefore the situation is identical to
that of those who use untreated sewage for irrigation.
This general picture has prompted authorities in charge of irrigation
in Bolivia to try and develop regulations which take into account not 3. Regulatory Framework Strategies
only the technical options for treating water but also the sustainability
of measures to be taken, given the lack of operation and maintenance The development of regulations relating to this has already followed
seen in various municipalities. steps such as the proposal stage, which defines the need to have
specific regulations; a consultant will be responsible for the preparation
stage, and the discussion stage will be the responsibility of a committee
including vice-ministries involved in dealing with the reuse of treated
wastewater, the various departments of the state who are dependent
2. Irrigation with Treated or Untreated Sewage in on the vice-ministries, and international cooperation in the form of
Bolivia offering support and sharing experience.
The stages mentioned above are followed by surveys, then the approval
Triangular cooperation between Mexico, Germany and Bolivia and publication of the proposal. These have not yet been carried out.
(COTRIMEX), has encouraged the investigation and reporting of The action taken to develop the proposal has taken into account the
proposals for the use of treated water in irrigation. During the period following specific points:
from 2012 to 2014, 111 irrigations systems using treated or untreated
sewage were built in the Andean region and the most significant • A study of associated current regulations
findings can be summarised as follows: • Proposal for the selection of parameters
• Links with WHO guidance
• Eighty-four WWTPs have been built in municipalities • Sustainability/generation of incentives

210 211
3.1. Study of current regulations In the context of current institutionalisation, there have been
discussions about who is in charge of what. Civil servants who work
One of the greatest difficulties in creating new regulations is aligning at the Vice Ministry of the Environment are zealous in the quasi strict
the current regulations with the overall objective. Bolivia has Law 1333 observance of the Law and reluctant to embrace changes to the
(Ley de Medio Ambiente 1333, 1992), the Environment Act, which, due parameters in their consolidation. They have made clear requests for
to its legal nature, comes above any planned regulations. studies that support any proposed changes. It goes without saying that
Often, aligning laws with regulations means making compromises there were no stringent studies for current parameters or anything else
that do not go against what is stipulated by the Law but rather respond meaning that the majority of bodies of water are not classified so far.
to interpretations in such a way that allows an agreement to be reached It has been proposed that treatment plants are seen as head works
between the parties. In particular, the Environment Act contains Water for the irrigation systems that use this water. This can define who is in
Contamination Regulations. charge of environmental monitoring of this type of water (Salazar, 2010).
These regulations govern the discharge of wastewater into bodies of In this case the irrigation sector would be the delegated head, given
water and classify bodies of water into four classes, each of which has 80 that the Law places the responsibility for all environmental matters with
physiochemical and bacteriological parameters, of which 25 are binding. the Vice Ministry of Environment and Water.
Since the enactment of Law 1333, very little has been done to The proposal means a political decision must be made by the
classify the bodies of water and the parameters are very strict with irrigation sector if it wants to see a change in the situation regarding
regard to quality, to the point that applying them is almost impossible. irrigation using household sewage, given that the industrial,
In fact, if you take into account the technology and the quality of the hydrocarbon and mining sectors have their own regulations. It is
water treated in the plants in major cities, total compliance with the also possible that, depending on the quality of the incoming water
regulations in force is not possible. Nevertheless, there also exists a and the type of treatment, the wastewater coming from the last two
set of provisional parameters (which includes classification of rivers) of these sectors may not be suitable for irrigation; conversely those
that are not as strict and that are used by treatment plant operators or from households have a similar physiochemical and bacteriological
designers in order to comply with Law 1333. composition and can therefore be governed by regulations for treated
We can see then that there exists in the Environment Act a way household wastewater (municipal).
of interpreting compliance with it through the provisional article,
particularly when in the whole Law irrigation is only mentioned in the
classification of bodies of water, and falls under Category A, that is to 3.2. Proposal for the Selection of Parameters
say the most stringent one: in this category the BOD5 must be less than
2 mg/l, faecal coliforms between 5 and 50 NMP/100 ml for 80 per cent The experiences of different countries who have regulations for
of samples, and suspended solids must be less than 10 mg/l, among irrigation have been taken into account. Nevertheless, parameters
other parameters. have not been applied consistently. Instead there is a range of suitable
With the Environment Act developed in this way, some sectors such parameters for the situation in each country but with a certain emphasis
as mining, industry and hydrocarbons have developed regulations on the application of the regulations created by the United States
(RASIM, 2002) applicable to these sectors in particular, to allow real Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
compliance that can be monitored through mechanisms proposed in In principle, efforts have been made to choose some parameters
these regulations. In a sense, the various sectors have demonstrated that are as close as possible to representative values for the existing
that the application of the Environment Act must be suitable for these water quality. In this way the established parameters could be
particular sectors and have shown a route that can also be taken by analysed with existing portable equipment and data can be made
other sectors. ready available.

212 213
 Some tasks can now be carried out with portable equipment as a 4. Sustainability and Generation of Incentives
response to the fact that many communities have treatment plants but
do not have a laboratory to measure the efficiency of the treatment in One of the requirements of the authorities that has been emphasised
order to be able to improve the process in any given case. But it is also has been in relation to the sustainability of the measures contained in
possible that medium-sized cities already have laboratories that can the regulations, as it is clear that farmers see water as an acquired right,
serve as a reference point for the analyses carried out in smaller towns. and regulations for distributing irrigation water are based on this.
The initial discussion about how many parameters should be taken As a general rule, irrigation water is not paid for, as investment in
into account has taken a long time due to the desire to keep parameters head works, such as damns, far exceeds the farmers’ ability to repay.
that, according to some participants, could not be omitted as they are It is rather a common practice for head works to be non-repayable
included in the Environment Act. Other participants wanted to carry and for the irrigation organisation to be responsible for irrigation
out further analysis of, for example, bio-indicators and others wanted schedules as well as the charging or working methods to carry out the
detailed results based on a scientific study, giving the most suitable maintenance of canals.
value limit for each parameter. What happens with sewage is worse. The ‘waste’ is used for irrigation
This has come to form the basis of the study of the parameters as a whole, whether in addition to clear water or as the only source of
in some already established regulations that serve as a guideline water for irrigation, and the irrigation organisation functions from the
(Cisneros, 2013) and that do not generate any discussion beyond that outlet from treatment plants.
of adapting them to the national situation. Thus, it was decided to base As a consequence, for an area trying to use wastewater that is
the regulations on the experience of the EPA and the regulations in adequately treated for irrigation, there lies a challenge in terms of
force in Mexico. financial sustainability and communication.
One of the ideas promoted from the technical side that handles
irrigation in Bolivia has been to look for mechanisms to cover the
3.3. Relationship with the PAHO/WHO financial aspects of using treated water for irrigation. Thus, a subproject
has been created to check the places that are irrigated with treated
One of the goals which it was attempted to include in the regulations water and the overall situation, including the functioning of the plants,
proposal is the WHO guidelines (WHO, 2006) regarding the use of the costs involved and the use of irrigation in them.
treated water in irrigation. It has been seen, however, that only large The following irrigation systems were chosen for the study:
and medium-sized cities could have access to health data allowing the Patacamaya and El Alto (La Paz); Cochabamba, Punata and Cliza
full implementation of the proposed guidelines. (Cochabamba); Sucre and Yotala (Chuquisaca); Tarija, Uriondo and San
This is a difficulty that, for now, has not been possible to overcome. Lorenzo (Tarija); Betanzos and Puna (Potosí); Comarapa (Santa Cruz);
Nevertheless, it is possible that many communities and small towns and Caracollo and Eucaliptus (Oruro).
are not able to build large treatment plants, and here the multi-barrier For all treatment plants a methodology has been developed and
guidelines proposed by the WHO can help. This involves training the involves, firstly, the location of the WWTP and its area of influence. The
people who manage the WWTPs and those who use the treated water. treatment method and its efficacy have been assessed and the costs
In view of this, a set of incentives have been proposed to ensure the for operating and maintaining the plants, and how to meet them, have
sustainability of using treated water for irrigation. been determined. The following table shows a summary of the findings.

214 215
 Name of Location and area Methodology and Treatment WWTP
WWTP of influence efficiency of treatment costs sustainability

Patacamaya Has two treatment The two WWTPs use similar treatment There are no data regar- The municipality is in charge of
plants. The muni- methods: preliminary treatment (screens ding the WWTP operation the WWTPs and has four people
cipality of Pataca- and grit chambers), primary treatment and maintenance costs; we working on this. It also pays for
maya is situated (Imhoff tanks), secondary treatment only know that electricity the electricity.
101 km from the city (biological filters), and tertiary treatment consumption is paid for. EMAPA, which is the company
of La Paz. The efflu- (maturation ponds). For similar flows of that provides the service, char-
ents from treatment approximately 1.0 l/s BOD5 intake 1,000 ges each user 4 Bs to handle
plants discharged mg/l and intake of faecal coliforms of the sewage but although part of
into the river are 3E7 NMP/100 ml the efficiencies are the tariff should be used for the
used in agriculture, approximately 82% and 98% for the two operation and management of
principally for fod- parameters. the WWTPs this does not hap-
der plants. pen in practice.

El Alto - WWTP built in 1998 The plant is being extended and cur- There is no separate payment EPSAS has an annual expenses
Puchukhollo serves the city of rently has two sets of ponds, each one for the operation and main- plan. This includes energy, staf-
El Alto in Murillo with six ponds and three trickling filters. tenance of the Puchukhollo fing review, maintenance, was-
province in the de- The treated water is discharged into the WWTP: a payment is made te, and administration.
partment of La Paz. Seco River. for the drinking water service Taking into account the WWTP’s
The plant is current- All of the water is used in irrigation; what and a percentage of this goes production, which is approxima-
ly being extended is more, the farmers have drilled the out- toward the sewage service. tely 430 l/s, the cost involved is
and this includes let and use this water for irrigation. 0.22 Bs/m3 (0.0315 US$/m3)
principally the ad- The BOD5 intake is 456 mg/l, efficiency A study2 establishes that
dition of trickling fil- of 76.75% at output. That of coliforms payment is made at a rate of
ters and disinfection is 7.3E7 at intake, efficiency of 99.8%. m3 of water consumed per
units. Given that El Alto is an industrial city, month. The average amount
there are other pollutants to be taken paid is 0.10 US$/m3.
into account.

2
Identification Study ‘Mejoramiento del Abastecimiento de Agua Potable Ciudad El Alto’ (Improving Supply of Drinking Water in the City of El Alto) Consultora RIMAC, 2013

Name of Location and area Methodology and Treatment WWTP

WWTP of influence efficiency of treatment costs sustainability

Alba Rancho Wastewater from the The treatment plant has four primary There is no separate payment SEMAPA has an annual expen-
– city of Cochabam- ponds over an area of 13.7 ha, and eight for the operation and main- ses plan This includes energy,
Cochabamba ba is drained into secondary ponds over an area of 21.9 tenance of the Alba Rancho staffing review, maintenance
the treatment plant ha. It also has a network of distribution WWTP, part of the payment and administration.
situated in the Alba channels and collection channels, and for sewage covers this area
Rancho area, to the their flow meter systems. and SEMAPA, which is the Taking into account the WWTP’s
south of the city. operator, has reported for the production, which is approxima-
The efficiency of BOD5 removal is 68% second management quarter tely 463 l/s, the cost involved is
The Alba Rancho for an intake concentration of 275 mg/l an average cost for sewage 0.18 Bs/m3 (0.026 US$/m3).
WWTP started ope- and for faecal coliforms is 96.33% for an services of 4.92 Bs/m3. (0.7
rating in 1986. intake of 5.8E7 NMP/100 ml. US$/m3).

Punata WWTP completed Originally, this WWTP had two anaero- There are no data regarding The municipality allocates
Colque in 2000 with a sys- bic ponds operating in parallel, each the operation and main- 45,000 Bs for sewage, including
Rancho tem of stabilisation one followed by a facultative pond and tenance costs of the WWTPs. three treatment plants, one of
ponds. Subse- finally three maturation ponds operating which is Colque Rancho.
quently in 2007 the in parallel. At the end of this treatment
University installed process there are wetlands for research In this area, the irrigators take
wetlands. purposes. part in maintaining the WWTP,
cleaning the WWTP grounds
The farmers have The assessment carried out by UMSS in once a year. Six communities
organised an irri- 2012 reports efficiency of about 83% for make use of this water, making
gation system with BOD5 (initial concentration of 432 mg/l) a total of 300 people who use
the construction of and about 90% for faecal coliforms (1.4 the water for two hours.
canals. They use E6 UFC/100ml intake concentration)
this water for fallow.
 plan. This includes energy, staf-

Taking into account the WWTP’s

ELAPAS has an annual expenses

fing review, maintenance and

production, which is approxima-

tely 132 l/s, the cost involved is
0.62 Bs/m3 (0.089 US$/m3)
The summary in the previous table shows how little importance is

sustainability
given to the treatment of the wastewater. In fact, it is only in the capital

WWTP
cities that the Providing Entity of Water and Sewage Services (EPSA)

administration.
keeps accounts of what it spends on a WWTP. Therefore, sustainability

Source: COTRIMEX, “Study of Tariffs and Subsidies for WWTPs in Bolivia (Estudio de Tarifas y Subsidios para las PTAR en Bolivia)”. Document under review, 2015.
in medium-sized and small cities is tied to what the municipality wants
to invest but only as part of the total maintenance of sewage systems.
In fact, in the majority of cases, no financial or human resources are
allocated exclusively to a WWTP.
Ideas have been put forward regarding how to organise grants at
There is no separate payment
for the operation and main-
tenance of the El Campanario
WWTP; part of the payment

The average tariff for the

drinking water and sewage
the design, construction and operation stages of irrigation systems

service is around 4 Bs/m3

using treated water.
for sewage covers this.
For the design stage, the grant should be 100 per cent and
Treatment
costs

the technical aspect should include a strong social dimension for

communicating treatment targets, and the use of multi-barriers to
monitor the risks from the production chain to the consumption of
products that have been irrigated with treated wastewater.
At the construction stage, a grant of up to 80% has been
recommended. For the rest of the funding, 15% would come from
the municipality and 5% would come from the irrigators to allow the
with Imhoff tanks; secondary treatment
ment, consisting of screens, grit cham-

mentation ponds and maturation ponds

This plant has facilities for pre-treat-

bers and flow meters; primary treatment

with trickling filters and secondary sedi-

The efficiency of BOD5 removal is 76%

as well as facilities for sludge treatment.

complete irrigation system to be equipped, that is to say the WWTP

for an intake concentration of 340 mg/l

and the irrigation water distribution channels. Of course, technical

sustainability needs to be ensured, that is to say it should be clear
efficiency of treatment
Methodology and

how the efficiency of the WWTP is going to be monitored and how

its operation and maintenance are going to be organised. Irrigation
associations should also already be trained in managing the treated water.
It has been proposed that incentives should go to municipalities
or entities that manage the treatment plants to cover its operation
and maintenance costs, provided that targets relating to the quality,
operation and maintenance of WWTPs are met. Incentives have
also been proposed for irrigators in marketing their products (green
products), provided that they comply with the multi-barrier guidelines
for managing the use of treated sewage for agricultural irrigation.
The drawback in this case is the availability of funding for the
The WWTP is loca-
ted in Campana-
rio, belonging to
the second district
of the Municipali-

of the department
of Chuquisaca, 11
km from the city of
ty of Yotala in the
north-eastern part
Location and area

grants that have been proposed. This proposal also requires political
of influence

decisions from the authorities for the use of resources that are returned
to the national treasury each year due to the failure of municipalities
Sucre.

to meet the total budgeted costs. This reinvestment in schemes for

irrigation with treated water would take place in the same municipality
with the advantage that health and environmental conditions can be
Campanario
Name of
WWTP

- Sucre

219
El
improved through incentives and not through regulatory taxation such References
as that which was carried out by the comptroller’s office which required
municipalities to pay tax when WWTPs were set up in some capital cities. Cisneros M.C., 2013. “Guía de referencia para el reúso de las aguas residuales en riego
agrícola (Reference guide for resuse of wastewater in agricultural irrigation).”

Consultora RIMAC, 2013. “Identification Study ‘Mejoramiento del Abastecimiento de

Agua Potable Ciudad El Alto’ (Improving Supply of Drinking Water in El Alto City).”
5. Conclusions
COTRIMEX, 2015. “Estudio de Tarifas y Subsidios para las PTAR en Bolivia (Study of
Tariffs and Subsidies for WWTPs in Bolivia).” Document under review.
• The Joint Commission, consisting of the three Vice Ministries of Ley de Medio Ambiente (Environment Act) Law No. 1333. April 1992.
Sanitation, Environment and Irrigation, as well as International
Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Agua (Ministry of Environment and Water). 2013.
Cooperation, has been very useful for discussing the technical
“Sistematización Sobre Tratamiento y Reuso de Aguas Residuales (Systematization of
aspects of the measures proposed in regulations so that decisions Treatment and Reuse of Wastewater)”, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Agua (Ministry
can be made more quickly. of Environment and Water).
• The intermediate authorities need to have a proactive attitude
RASIM, 2002. “Reglamento Ambiental del Sector Industrial y Manufacturero
towards change as it is these authorities who submit their reports (Environmental Regulations for the Industrial and Manufacturing Sectors).” Supreme
to decision makers. Decree 26736, July 2002.
• It is necessary that the interested party, in this case the irrigation
sector, not only promotes, but is also be the driving force behind Salazar L. et al. 2010. “Sustentabilidad y Autogestión de Sistemas de Riego (Sustainability
and Self-Management of Irrigation Systems).”
all the initiatives, meetings and decisions, and ensures that they
all happen. This requires its activities to be in line with a project Supreme Decree 24176. 1995. “Reglamento Ambiental para Actividades Mineras
framework that can involve international cooperation as in the case (Environmental Regulations for Mining Activities).” December 1995.
of Bolivia which has COTRIMEX where targets are shown that the
Supreme Decree 26171. 2001. “Reglamento Ambiental del sector Hidrocarburos
authorities themselves undertake to meet in some way. (Environmental Regulations for the Hydrocarbons sector).” May 2001.
• Finally, there needs to be political commitment, both to integrate
new regulations into the existing Law and to ensure the provision WHO. 2006. “Guidelines for the safe use of wastewater, excreta and greywater”, Vol 2.
of funding for the proposed grants.

220 221
CASE 13
Community-Based Wastewater Management
System in Peri-Urban Areas of Kathmandu Valley,
Nepal (Nepal)

Uttam Raj Timilsina 1

Abstract

This case attempts to present the trend of wastewater production,

management and use at a community level in the Kathmandu valley
(Kathmandu Lalitpur and Bhaktapur), Nepal. It also presents the
current state of policy, technology and management practices and
the institutional arrangements in addressing the development and
management of infrastructure and services on wastewater management
and the environmental, health and livelihood consequences emerging
from wastewater production and use in peri-urban areas of the
Kathmandu valley. Specific attention has been paid to the agricultural
use of wastewater, the impacts on the agricultural production
environment and the people using wastewater in the production of
seasonal vegetables and crops. In presenting the use of wastewater
in agriculture, attention has been paid to the existing practices of
wastewater use in agriculture by the people of the Khokana community
as a successful case study. The case ends with an analysis on the state
of knowledge gap in the country relating to the safe use of wastewater
and an assessment of the capacity building needs of the relevant

1
Uttam Raj Timilsina 
Senior Water Management Engineer, Community Managed Irrigated Agriculture Sector
Project (CMIASP-AF)/Adjunct Professor of Agricultural Engineering, AFU, Nepal
e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

223
institutions concerned with the management and use of wastewater. the country is 3 million ha, of which 1.766 million has is potentially
The analyses in the case show that the management of wastewater in irrigable. At present nearly 1.33 million ha or 44% of the cultivated area
the country is driven by the notion of wastewater as an ‘environmental has an irrigation facility of some kind but only 17% of the cultivated
nuisance’ rather than a ‘resource’ with the potential for safe application area has access to year-round irrigation. Administratively the country is
in agriculture and non-agricultural uses. This notion is shown to be divided into five development regions and 75 districts. The districts are
driven by to prevalence of sectoral and disciplinary approaches in considered the key units for development planning and the delivery of
water sector development. The water sector policy environment in the administration and support services. Poverty is widely prevalent in the
country, legislation and regulatory provisions, in general, are found to country with 25.4% of the population below the poverty line of 1 US$
favour the promotion of safe wastewater use while gaps are identified per capita per day (NPC, 2010).
in institutional arrangements and at the implementation level. The
gap in the implementation level is noted in terms of separation in the
use of wastewater from the design, development and management
of wastewater system and services. The opportunity, however, lies in 2. State and Sources of Wastewater Production
considering wastewater as a resource and promoting the safe use of
wastewater as means of ensuring and adding to agricultural water The production of wastewater in the Kathmandu valley is through
security at the local level. The knowledge system in the country and domestic, commercial and industrial routes. The sewer systems in the
research and development on the wastewater system, practices and Kathmandu valley are essentially combined sewerage and storm water
safe use are found to be largely deficient. drains, and also the illegal connection of sewerage to storm water drains
Keywords: wastewater, water quality, peri-urban, policy is common in many parts of the Kathmandu valley. The direct disposal
implementation, community-based of solid and liquid wastes along the river course and rainwater runoff
originating from the urban areas and agricultural lands have also been
responsible for significant degradation in the water quality of the rivers
and other surface water bodies. Wastewater produced from the domestic
1. Country Context routes includes grey water and black water produced from washing,
cleaning, bathing and sanitary uses. Only small numbers of houses are
Nepal is a landlocked mountainous country in South Asia, located between connected to sanitary wastewater systems and therefore most houses
latitudes 26°22’N and 30°27’N and longitudes 80°04’E and 88°12’E, and end up disposing the wastewater directly into the rivers and other water
bordered by China to the north and India to the south, east and west. bodies. With a 232 km sewer system developed in the Kathmandu valley,
With a total land area of 14.718 million ha the country is characterised only 40% of the population has access to a sewer facility (ICIMOD et al.
by a diverse topography, geology and climate, creating opportunity 2007). Wastewater generated by industries has been another source of
and constraints for diverse land uses and livelihood patterns. Nepal is wastewater. A total of 4,500 industrial units of different sizes are estimated
predominantly mountainous with 77% of the land area being hills and to be operating in different parts of the country. The concentration of
mountains and only 23% of the area, called Terai, is flat, being located industries is large in the Kathmandu valley. Nearly 40% of the industries
along the southern border. The elevation ranges from 64 m above sea in the country are estimated to be producing significant amounts of
level to 8,848 m at the summit of Mount Everest, within a span of 200 km. wastewater. The combined wastewater production in the three industrial
The total population of the country according to the population estates in Kathmandu valley Balaju, Patan and Bhaktapur is estimated to
census of 2011 is 26.62 million. Nepal’s economy is largely based on be 800 m3/day. The wastewater generated in most industries is mixed
agriculture, which contributes to nearly 40% of GDP and provides with the municipal sewerage system while solid industrial waste is
employment for two-thirds of the population. The cultivated area of collected and dumped into pits or open spaces.

224 225
 No reliable data are available on the total volume of wastewater 3. State of Treatment and Management Services for
production from different sources and in the urban and rural areas of
Wastewater
the country. In the absence of necessary information, the daily volume
of wastewater production is estimated based on the average daily
The existing state of some wastewater treatment plants in operation
consumption of water per capita, which is taken as 75 litres per capita
in the Kathmandu valley and in other urban areas of the country is
per day in urban areas and 40 litres per capita per day in rural areas, with
provided in Table 2. In 1999 the Bagmati Civilisation Integrated
85% of this ending up as domestic wastewater (UNEP 2001). The volume
Development Committee (BCIDC), previously known as the High Power
of wastewater generated and collected in the wastewater management
Committee for the implementation and monitoring of the Bagmati
system in the five municipalities of the Kathmandu valley, which are the
Area Sewerage Construction/Rehabilitation Project, was constituted
most urbanised areas in the country, is provided in Table 1.
with the aim of restoring environmental conditions in the Bagmati river,
and constructed the Guheshwori Wastewater Treatment plant with the
design capacity of 17.3 MLD of wastewater. The plant constructed with
Table 1: Wastewater Production in Municipal Areas of the Kathmandu Valley
the aim of improving the Bagmati River Environment at Pashupatinath
Temple has been functioning only intermittently due to high operating
MUNICIPALITIES costs and the problem of foaming in the aeration tank.
DESCRIPTION
Table 2 clearly shows that almost all of the large-scale and centralised
Kath- Patan Bhaktapur Kirtipur Madhyapur- wastewater treatment plants developed in Kathmandu are either
mandu Thimi non-functional or operating much below their design capacity. The
reasons, among others, have been the higher costs of operation and
Volume of 64,497 15,647 5,971 3,920 3,069 maintenance and upkeep of the system. As an alternative to centralised
Domestic wastewater treatment, options for decentralising the management of
Wastewater
Generated
wastewater are being promoted by the development organisations
(MLD) involved with public health and environmental issues, such as UN-
Habitat, Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO),
Volume of 4,515 1,095 418 274 215 municipalities and community groups.
Industrial Despite efforts over the past three decades, the agencies involved
Wastewater in public health and environmental management, including municipal
Generated )
MLD)
bodies in the Kathmandu valley, have failed to manage the growing
volume of wastewater. The problems are aggravated every year in
urban areas due to the increasing volume of wastewater generation as
Total Waste- 69,012 16.742 6,389 4,195 3,284
water Gener-
a result of accelerated growth in the urban population, the shortage
ated (MLD) of drinking water supplies, and the inability of the government and
municipalities to improve urban infrastructure and services, especially
Wastewater 34,506 8,371 3,195 2,097 1,642
the expansion of the sanitary sewerage system and roadside and storm
Collected water drainage in urban areas. Ultimately, the sewage is dumped in the
(MLD) rivers without any kind of treatment.

Source: ICIMOD, MOEST/GON and UNEP 2007

226 227
Table 2: Existing wastewater treatment plants in the Kathmandu valley and other urban areas of Nepal

Location Type/Stage Capacity MLD Present State Service Details

Dhobighat, Patan (Kathmandu Valley) 1st Pond – Aerobic 15.4 Not working HH Connections-53,900
2nd Pond – Anaerobic Sewerage Lines-61,650
3rd Pond – Facultative Combine channel- 44Km
4th Pond- Aerobic

Kodku, (Kathmandu Valley) 1st Pond – Aerobic 1.1 Partially working HH Connections- 15,500
2nd Pond – Anaerobic Sewerage Lines- 20,443
3rd Pond – Facultative Combine channel- 11Km
4th Pond- Aerobic

Sallaghari, Bhaktapur (Kathmandu Valley) Aerated lagoon 2.4 Not working Details not available

Hanumanghat, Bhaktapur, (Kathmandu Valley) Oxidation Ditch 0.4 Not working

Guheswori, Kathmandu (Kathmandu Valley) Oxidation Ditch 16.4 Not working Sewers- 6 Km
Population Served- 53,000
Urban area- 21 Ha

Hetauda Industrial Estate, Hetauda Oxidation Pond 1.1 Working Industrial Wastewater Treatment Plant

Dhulikhel Hospital Reed Bed < 0.10 Working Without Primary Treatment
(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 261 m2
Population served- 330

Kathmandu Municipality Reed Bed < 0.40 Working No Primary Treatment

(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 362 m2
Population served- 330

Location Type/Stage Capacity MLD Present State Service Details

Mulpi International School Reed Bed < 0.25 Working No Primary Treatment
(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 376 m2
Population Served- 850

SKM Hospital Reed Bed 0.15 Working Bed Size- 141 m2

(Constructed Wetland) Population Served- 500

Kathmandu University Reed Bed < 0.035 Working No Primary Treatment

(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 587 m2
Population Served- 1300

Middle Marshyangdi Hydropower Project Reed Bed < 0.026 Working No Primary Treatment
(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 298 m2
Population Served- 870

Pokhara Municipality Reed Bed < 0.115 Working No Primary Treatment

(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 3,308 m2
Population Served- 3830

Kapan Monastery (Kathmandu Valley) Reed Bed < 0.015 Working No Primary Treatment
(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 150 m2
Population Served- 300

Tansen Municipality Reed Bed < 0.030 Working No Primary Treatment

(Constructed Wetland) Bed Size- 583 m2
Population Served- 1000

Sunga Community Wastewater Treatment Plant Reed Bed 50 m3/day Working Community Wastewater Treatment
(Kathmandu Valley) (Constructed Wetland) Plant
Bed Size- 150 m2
Population Served- 1200
4. Wastewater Disposal and Use by digging ground at one corner of the homestead and dumping all
the biodegradable waste and wastewater produced in the homestead.
In Nepal, the practice of wastewater use in agriculture and elsewhere Upon filling, it would be covered by hay and farm residues which would
and the emerging environmental and health consequences are not then get composted in 3-4 months’ time for use in the agricultural
well documented despite the fact that the practice of wastewater fields. Excess water from Saaga was either used for irrigating small
irrigation is an age-old tradition that is intricately linked to the culture plots of vegetables within the homestead or directed to wastewater
and livelihood system of the people of the Kathmandu valley. In the drains which would then be recycled for irrigation. Nauga, another
valley, in agricultural land located within city centres and urban fringes, pit made in the ground floor of the house was used as the urinating
farmers are known to practice wastewater irrigation in significantly place, by digging the ground and putting a layer of ash on it. The
larger areas (Rutkowski 2004). The practice of wastewater use in the people would urinate over the ash, which would get converted into
Kathmandu valley is largely informal and there is no institutional useful fertilizer for use in the farms. These traditional practices of solid
regulation for wastewater use, at least for now. The farmers practicing waste and wastewater management were unhygienic, unmanageable,
wastewater irrigation use wastewater from different sources which odorous, and breeding grounds for house flies and other insects.
include municipal sewage, rivers carrying wastewater and water stored In 1981 the Ministry of Local Development, in collaboration with
in ponds and pools developed in the urban, peri-urban and rural areas UNICEF, supported the construction of pit latrines in 31 households
of the Kathmandu valley. in Sano Khokana but only a few households actually used them and
instead continued with their traditional practice of open defecation and
waste management in Saaga and Nauga in the homestead. Since the
4.1. Case Study of Khokana: Community-Based Wastewater practice of traditional waste management was unhygienic, people were
Management System susceptible to diseases of different kinds. The initiative of constructing
pit latrines failed because of high groundwater table in the area.
This case study presents the success story of a community-based People feared that the latrines would get filled up quickly and require
wastewater management system developed at Khokana, a dense the frequent removal of sludge. Therefore, they connected the toilets
medieval Newar settlement located in the Karyabinayak Municipality directly to the surface drains which were not fully covered and were
of the Lalitpur District. The traditional settlement of Khokana, which poorly maintained. This situation further intensified the problem of
includes two settlements , the main Khokana village and small Khokana waste management in the village.
(Sano Khokana) covers only about 0.20 km2. The community-based In 2007 Lumanti, a local NGO working for informal settlements, and
wastewater treatment system, described in this case study, is located UN-Habitat, working on water supply and sanitation issues in Asian
in Sano Khokana, a small settlement serving a population of 229 cities for healthy living, joined together to help the community improve
people in 39 households. Farming is the main source of sustenance solid and liquid waste management in the village. The challenge was
for the majority of households in the village. People in the village live to develop a system for solid and liquid waste management that
in traditional clustered housing with a central courtyard and houses would be integrated and based on people’s traditional practices, and
located around the courtyard, which is typical of traditional Newar therefore acceptable to them, offering a cost-effective and sustainable
settlements in the Kathmandu valley. solution to the problem. Since almost 80% of households had toilets
Households in Sano Khokana traditionally recovered solid waste in the homestead, constructed with support from the Ministry of Local
and wastewater through a unique system of wastewater recycling and Development and UNICEF, and the disposal of black water from
composting. In traditional Newar households, Saaga and Nauga had toilets was a problem in the absence of suitable septic tanks and/
been used prior to the development of modern sewer lines and the use or connections to appropriate sewerage systems, it was decided to
of flush pour latrines. Saaga, a pit of 3ft x 3ft x 2ft in size, was made develop a sewerage system connecting the toilets in each household

230 231
to a centralized biogas digester. The development of the biogas the biogas digester, households also feed daily loads of biodegradable
digester was thought to be appropriate because it provided not only solid waste generated in the homestead into the biogas digester. The
an alternative for sanitary handling of human excreta and grey water treated wastewater is collected in a small pond which is then directed
from households but also an opportunity to generate biogas for use for irrigation on the farm land.
by households besides recovering digested manure, which is readily The total cost of developing the system was NRs 1,300,000 (US
suitable for use in the crop lands. $16,502), which was funded by UN-Habitat under the Water for Asian
A Reed Bed Treatment System (RBTS) was integrated into the system Cities Program. The direct beneficiaries of the biogas plant and RBTS
so that effluent from the biogas digester and the wastewater generated are the 229 people in Sano Khokana from whom the operation and
by households could be treated and recovered for use on farms for maintenance fund is collected. The operation and management of the
irrigation. Maintaining suitable water content in the waste, fed into the system are carried out by a user group. The local community contributed
biogas digester, was a prerequisite for the proper functioning of the 3,500 ft2 (325.16 m2) of land for infrastructure development, the market
biogas digester, so a system for diverting excess wastewater from the value of which is currently NRs 3,000,000 (US $38,086). At present each
sewer line to RBTS was proposed. Thus, an integrated system with a household whose latrine is connected to the system pays a monthly
biogas plant and RBTS was developed in the village, which included fee of NRs 30 (US $0.38) for wastewater and sewage disposal. The five
three essential elements that became bases for the success of the system: households that benefit from the biogas plant each pay NRs 200 (USD
$2.54) per month. The collected fund is deposited in the account of
i) An eco-sanitary system for the handling of solid and liquid waste the user group and is used to pay for the salary of the caretaker of
that was based on proven technology, the biogas plant and RBTS and also for the repair and maintenance
ii) Inclusion of all households in the village into the system, offering of the system. The caretaker of the system is a lady from the village
them a sustainable solution to solid and liquid waste management, who is paid NRs 1,500 (US $19.04) per month. She is responsible for
iii) Resource recovery that drew upon the traditional practice of the day-to-day operation and maintenance of the biogas plant and the
recovering solid waste and wastewater and an added value of collection of daily loads of solid waste from households to feed into
benefit. the digester.
The development of the integrated wastewater management
The biogas plant developed in Sano Khokana is a dome type anaerobic system has tremendously improved the environment and sanitation
digester, 20 m3 in capacity and designed for a retention time of 45 days. in Sano Khokana. This has added to the dignity of the people as the
The system came into operation in August 2007 while the RBTS started village is now declared an open defection free village. The system
functioning after a year, beginning in September 2008. The system has has eliminated the burden for emptying the filled septic tanks, at
been in full operation benefitting 37 households in the village. The least once a year, which not only led to cost savings for emptying the
digested slurry from the biogas plant is directed to a slurry drying septic tank but also reduced the drudgery involved in the process.
bed. Water from the slurry drying bed and excess wastewater from the The system is also designed to handle other household and kitchen
sewer line is directed to the RBTS for treatment. The RBTS developed waste, fed into the biogas plant, which has improved the cleanliness
in Khokana is a horizontal flow system with the capacity to treat 18.5 m3 of the homestead area. The gas generated in the biogas digester is
of wastewater per day. The reed bed is 25 m in length, 9 m in width, distributed to five households whose energy needs for cooking are
and filled with a sand and gravel layer to a thickness of 70 cm. The almost fully met with the gas supply throughout the year. The good
wastewater diverted from the sewer line and wastewater coming from quality manure, with high fertilizer value, generated from the biogas
the slurry drying bed is passed through a three chamber anaerobic plan is an additional benefit to the people. The treated water coming
baffle reactor prior to entering the Reed Bed, which helps to improve out of the RBTS, which is full of nutrients, is stored in a pond and then
efficiency in the operation of the system. Besides black water fed into recycled for irrigation. This element of resource recovery built into the

232 233
 SUPPLEMENTARY

Fanga Phuku
IRRIGATION

Gaa Phuku

Kutu Phuku
SOURCE
system has been an additional benefit to the people. The wastewater

None

None

None

None
that used to be discharged haphazardly prior to the development of
the system is now recovered for productive uses. According to the
hygiene assessment of the village carried out by Lumanti in 2009, the

Table 3: Irrigation Coverage from Wastewater in Selected Community Wastewater Management Systems in Khokana
occurrence of diseases caused by poor sanitation was found to have

the Dry Season

been reduced by almost 90%.

Coverage in
There are seven community wastewater irrigation systems in one

80%

50%
60%

75%

75%

75%
75%
small area of Khokana with the size of the irrigated area under each
system as small as 0.26 to 7.76 ha (Table 3). The most noticeable

IRRIGATION COVERAGE
observation is the almost total dependence on wastewater for
irrigation during the dry season when other sources of water were not

the Wet Season

available for irrigation. The wastewater in the dry season in the study

Coverage in
area was found to be used for the production of vegetables, which is

All

All

All
All

All

All

All
an important source of cash income for people in the area.
The high nutrient content of the wastewater was also considered by
farmers to contribute positively to crop production. In an attempt to
analyse the nutrient content of wastewater, the average nitrate content
in wastewater was 6.95 mg/l, 4.9 mg/l, and 3.5 mg/l respectively in

Total Area
(ropani)
Saaga, in the conveyance channel, and in the wastewater storage

445
150
25

50

80

70

20
5
ponds. Similarly, the concentrations of phosphorus and potash at the
three stages were 3 mg/l, 10.7 mg/l and 4.35 mg/l, and 42.9 mg/l, 149
mg/l and 27.7 mg/l, respectively. These nutrients, which are present in

No. of
wastewater, are needed by the crops for their growth, development,

Hhs

401
30

40

60
35

55
50

65

40
20
6
and production.

Dhuney Chey, Nhaya Bhu

Kway Lacchi, Kutu Phuku

Name of the System
4.2. Use of Wastewater from the Hanumante River in the Bhaktapur

LOCATION
District

Nyah La, Nanicha

Kalnani, Gaa Bhu

Kway lachhi
There is a study of the practice of using wastewater from Hanumante

Thala Chey
Nhaya Bhu

Taa Jhaya

Dhokashi
Nanicha
River in Bhaktapur, which is a tributary of Bagmati River. The study
involved the documentation of wastewater use practices in 55 farming
households in the area that are essentially small farmers with an average
landholding size of 0.23 ha. The Hanumante River is the major stream in

Ward
No.

2
3

4
5

7
8
the areas passing through the urban core of the city of Bhaqktapur. The
river carries domestic and industrial wastewater generated in the urban
areas of Bhaktaur and Madhyapur-Thimi and also the river reach is used

Nhaya Bhu Tacha Dha

NAME OF SYSTEM

Duney Chey Chuke

for solid waste dumping. The water quality analysis of the river at seven

Nani Chukye Dha

locations from upstream to downstream is provided in Table 4, which

Dhokashi Dha
Ghashi Dha

1 ha= 19.46 ropani,

Gha Dha
Lee Dha

Total
234 Dha 235
S.N.

7
 Table 4: Variation in the Water Quality of Hanumante River Water Used for Irrigation
by Farmers

clearly shows that organic waste in the river are a major contributor
to water quality degradation. Also, the large concentration of faecal Parame- Unit Sample ID NWQS for
S.N ters Irrigation
coliform in the river water is indicative that any direct use of river water,
including irrigation, would be hazardous to human health.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
It is noted that as many as 64% of the farming households are using
wastewater from the Hanumante River for irrigation throughout the
1 pH - 7.68 7.36 6.97 6.99 7.03 7.06 7.19 6.5-8.5
year while 34% of the them are using water for irrigation only during
the monsoon. As many as 62% of the farmers owned a pump to lift 2 E.C uS/cm 126 148 423 454 434 423 392 < 40ms/m
water from the river for irrigation. The wastewater in the area is shown
to be used in irrigating vegetables, which is an important means of 3 DO mg/L 7 5.3 0 0 0.8 1.5 0.7
cash income for farmers in the area. The farmers sell their produces
in the adjoining markets of Thimi, Bhaktapur and in Kathmandu. The 4 Calcium mg/L 9.6 15.2 39.2 44.8 46.4 40 42.4
farmers indicated increasing problems in selling their vegetables
5 Magnesium mg/L 2.91 4.86 13.1 0.97 7.29 2.43 5.34
that are produced using wastewater. As many as 67% of the farmers
indicated that the buyers restrain from buying vegetables produced in 6 Chloride mg/L 7 7 29 29 28 26 23 < 100
the area around the Hanumante River because of the prevailing practice
of wastewater use in vegetable production. On the other hand, 33 % 7 TSS mg/L 5 75 65 56 98 31 36
of the farmers indicated that they did not face any difficulty in selling
the produce to consumers even though the consumers knew that the 8 VSS mg/L 11 18 50 47 33 27 20
vegetables are produced using wastewater.
9 Total Solids mg/L 169 206 234 318 318 270 254
The perception of famers practicing wastewater irrigation in terms
of the effects of wastewater use in crop production was also studied.
10 BOD mg/L 3.5 4.7 79.9 67.4 28.9 25.9 18.9
While only 20% of farmers reported an increase in the productivity of
the crops with the use of wastewater, as many as 80% of the farmers 11 COD mg/L 18.9 17.9 128 123 73.7 61.4 41.5
noticed a reduction in crop productivity with wastewater application.
Those farmers who saw a decrease in crop productivity due to 12 Ammonia mg/L 0.4 2.6 21.6 25.1 17.8 15 11.5
wastewater use attributed this reduction to the high nutrient content in
the wastewater. Farmers in the area have noticed the drying and wilting 13 Nitrate mg/L 3.39 2.02 0.81 0.81 0.91 0.41 <0.2

of crops with the repeated application of wastewater.

14 Total mg/L 0.09 0.17 1.3 1.58 1.71 1.16 0.82
The traditional wastewater management practice in the Kathmandu Phosphorus
valley and also in other parts of the country has been declining rapidly
due to changing socio-economic conditions of the people and increasing 15 Sodium mg/L 8.07 9.23 22.9 26.5 23.8 22.0 19.1 < 70 mg/l
awareness and consciousness of the people to health and hygiene.
The practice of developing Saagah in the backyard of the house in the 16 Potassium mg/L 3.52 4.11 15.6 16.9 14.9 14.1 9.49
Newar settlement has almost totally been eliminated except in some
17 Chromium mg/L <0.02 <0.02 0.02 <0.02 <0.02 <0.02 <0.02 <0.1 mg/l
traditional Newar households in rural areas. People have increasing
preferences for connecting their toilets and wastewater system to
18 Lead mg/L <0.01 <0.01 <0.01 <0.02 <0.02 <0.02 <0.02 <0.2 mg/l
sewer lines. This change in practice has led to the direct disposal of
grey and black water in rivers and open water bodies, which has been 19 Zinc mg/L 0.05 0.09 0.21 0.1 0.05 0.13 0.07 <1.0 mg/l

20 Faecal CFU TN TN TN TN TN TN TN <1 count

Coliform /100 ml TC TC TC TC TC TC TC /100ml
236

Note: 1-7 locations of water sampling upstream to downstream on the river course NWQS- Nepal Water Quality Standard
(Source: Sada 2010)
responsible for increasing pollution loads in the river and other water • Encouraging the effective participation of non-governmental
bodies. It has been observed that the practice of using wastewater in organisations and the private sector in increasing water supply and
agriculture at present is limited to the older generations while young sanitation coverage,
boys and girls restrain from handling wastewater. Nevertheless, farmers • Developing sewerage systems with treatment plants with the active
practicing wastewater irrigation feel that with the change in the practice involvement of consumer groups,
of wastewater for irrigation purposes, they have been losing valuable • Prohibiting the direct disposal of untreated sewage into water
nutrients that were being recovered and used on crop lands. bodies.

The legislation and regulatory provisions encompassing the issues

relating to wastewater management and safeguarding water bodies
include: the Environmental Protection Act (1996), Local Self-Governance
5. Policies and Institutional Set-Up for Wastewater Act (1999), Industrial Enterprises Act (1993), National Wetland Policy
Management Act (2003), National Sanitation Act (1994), Pesticide Act (1992), Solid
Waste Management and Resource Mobilisation Act (1988), and Water
Resources Act (1992).
5.1 Policies and Legislation Solid Waste Management and Resources Mobilisation Act (1988):
This act focuses on solid waste management in the Kathmandu,
In the absence of a separate policy for wastewater management, the Bhaktapur and Lalitpur municipalities. The act lays out regulatory
related issues of wastewater management are dealt with under sectoral provisions for the implementation of activities and the mobilisation of
policies and strategies relating to water supply and sanitation. Two resources for solid waste management in the stated areas. The act sets
documents that reflect upon the national commitment to improve out provisions for the collection, handling and disposal of solid waste
water supply and sanitation in the country are the Rural Water Supply in such a way that it does not cause environmental damage in the area
and Sanitation Sector Strategy (2004) and the Urban Water Supply designated for the disposal of solid waste. The roles and responsibilities
and Sanitation Policy (2009). The Rural Water Supply and Sanitation of the citizen relating to the collection and disposal of solid waste have
Sector Strategy (2004) is based on a national commitment to total been identified and set by the act.
water supply and sanitation coverage in the country as envisaged
in the Millennium Development Goal. The Urban Water Supply and
Sanitation Policy (2009) envisions an improvement in water service 5.2 Institutional Arrangements for Wastewater Management
delivery in urban areas, including an improvement in the wastewater
systems and services, the promotion of public-private partnerships in The Ministry of Water Supply and Sanitation (MWSS) has overall
the development of infrastructure and services, and the enforcement responsibility for making policies and development plans and
of national guidelines for the safe disposal and use of wastewater. In administering water supply, sanitation, the transport sector and related
an attempt to improve water supply and sanitation services, National physical infrastructure development in the country. The Ministry has
Guidelines for Hygiene and Sanitation Promotion (2005) have been established a Sanitation Division responsible for providing technical
endorsed, emphasising: assistance to bilateral and multilateral organisations in formulating,
monitoring and evaluating sanitation programmes, including urban and
• Increasing coordination among agencies related to water supply rural rainwater and domestic sewerage, except the road drainage system.
and sanitation with the active role of the National Drinking Water The Department of Water Supply and Sewerage (DWSS) under
and Sanitation Committee at the central level, MPPW is responsible for the planning and development of water supply

238 239
and sanitation systems and related infrastructure development in the Table 5: Water Quality Standards for Different Uses Reported by Water Agencies in Nepal
country. The responsibilities of DWSS encompass rural and small urban
centres in the country. The Nepal Water Supply Corporation (NWSC)
has been created as a semi-autonomous corporation responsible Parameter Drinking Aquatic life Bathing Agriculture
for water supply and sewerage in major urban centres outside the
Kathmandu valley. In the Kathmandu valley, responsibility for the pH 6.5-9.2 6.5-8.5 6.5-9 6.5-9
development, operation and management of infrastructure and services
TDS (mg/l) 1500 1000 1500 500-3000
for water supply and sewerage system lies with Kathmandu Upatyaka
Khanepani Limited (KUKL), an institution created under a public-private
SS (mg/l) - 25 50 -
partnership. The Local Self Governance Act (1999) sets out the duties
of local government, municipalities and VDCs with regard to drinking DO as O2 (mg/l) - 6 3 3
water, irrigation, sanitation, and water conservation. The main role of
local governments is expected to be the development of water and Cl as Cl (mg/l) 600 500 1000 100-1000
sanitation facilities by drawing up local plans and programmes, and
also providing materials and financial support for the development of SO4 as SO4 400 500 1000 1000
infrastructure and services by the local community.
NO3-N as N (mg/l) - 20 20 25

NO2-N as N (mg/l) - 0.15 1.0 1.0

5.3 Regulation of Wastewater Use in Agriculture and Other Uses
NH3-N as N (mg/l) - 0.02 0.2 0.2
The regulations relating to wastewater use in agriculture and other
uses are weak in the absence of necessary regulatory provisions Total PO4 as PO4 (mg/l) 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2
and the absence of institutions with autonomous responsibility for
BOD as O2 (mg/l) 4 4 6 10
wastewater use and management. There is no effluent quality specified
for the disposal of wastewater in the water bodies, but the quality
F as F (mg/l) 3 1 1.5 1.5
criteria generally reported by most agencies for different water uses
is provided in Table 5. In 2008 quality guidelines for the safe use of Total Hg - 0.0001 0.001 0.001
wastewater in agriculture, aquaculture, animal watering, recreation,
and the environment were formulated and published in the Gazette of Total Cd - 0.005 0.005 0.01
the Government of Nepal (Sada 2011).
There is no institutional arrangement to regulate wastewater use in Total Pb 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.1

agriculture and also there are no guidelines available to ensure the safe
Cr - 0.05 0.05 0.1
handling of wastewater and agricultural produces. Considering that
wastewater use in agriculture would accelerate in the country in the Phenol 0.002 0.005 0.1 0.2
future, at least in urban areas like Kathmandu, developing wastewater
irrigation guidelines would be a crucial first step to addressing Total Cyanide - 0.005 0.2 0.2
wastewater use in agriculture.
Total Colliform - - 1000 1000
(MPN/100ml)

Source: Sharma et al. 2005

240
6. Research on Wastewater Systems and Use • Nepal Health Research Council, Ministry of Health

Research and knowledge development and the dissemination of Some of the key achievements in research and knowledge development
pertinent knowledge on wastewater management are highly scattered for wastewater systems and management in Nepal to date are as follows:
and non-systematic in Nepal. The research efforts are limited to a small
number of educational and research institutions and development • Systematic analysis of water quality in the rivers of the Kathmandu
organisations and the professionals engaged therein whose areas of Valley carried out by the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology
involvement have been as stated below: (DHM), Government of Nepal, and ENPHO during 1992-1996
• Classification of River Systems in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan Region
• Analysis of the state of water quality degradation in the surface carried out by ICIMOD during 2006-2007 based on water quality
water bodies (rivers, lakes and ponds) including limnological criteria which also included rivers in the Kathmandu Valley
studies in the surface water bodies. • Kathmandu Valley Environmental Outlook prepared by the Ministry
• Assessment of the performance of technology and infrastructure of Environment Science and Technology in support of ICIMOD and
relating to wastewater management. UNEP in 2007
• Health and livelihood consequences and disease dynamics • Design Optimisation and Promotion of Decentralised Wastewater
emerging from water quality degradation. Management System in Nepal by ENPHO
• Interdisciplinary analysis of processes and outcome of the
degradation of surface and groundwater systems. No research projects specifically focusing on wastewater use
• Technology options for decentralised wastewater treatment. and management that looks into social, economic, technological,
• Policy research on surface and groundwater use and management. environmental, health, and livelihood concerns are known to be
underway in the country.
The organisations occasionally involved in research and knowledge
development for wastewater systems include universities, research
organisations and units in the government ministries and departments
with an independent responsibility for research and development, and
7. Knowledge Gaps and Needs for Safe
a small number of development organisations involved in development
and policy research. These include: Wastewater Use

• Central Department of Geography, Tribhuvan University No analysis is available to date on the state of knowledge and knowledge
• Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University gap regarding safe wastewater use across different water sector agencies
• Kathmandu University and their personnel in the country. This lack of emphasis on assessing
• Nepal Engineering College, Pokhara University the knowledge gap in terms of safe wastewater use is probably due to
• International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development the existing perception of considering wastewater an environmental
(ICIMOD) ‘nuisance’ and not a ‘resource’ by the water sector agencies and their
• Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO) personnel. Much of the emphasis to date has been on the development
• Institute of Social and Environmental Transition-Nepal (ISET-Nepal) of physical infrastructure and services in the collection, conveyance,
• Nepal Agricultural Research Council treatment, and safe disposal of wastewater whereas the recycling and
• System Management and Training Programme (SMTP), Department reuse of wastewater have received little emphasis in the design and
of Irrigation implementation of development programmes. Part of the reason for

242 243
not considering wastewater as a potential resource for productive relevance and the importance of knowledge of safe wastewater use, they
use in agriculture and other sectors has been the lack of institutional also invariably identified a low level of current emphasis on developing
coordination across water sector agencies. Water sector development programmes and plans in promoting the safe use of wastewater. All of the
in the country is highly sectoral, with sectoral policies dominating the agencies also identified a high level of need in developing institutional
development of water systems and services in each sector. capacity, in terms of the development and addition of human, materials
In the course of preparing this case, relevant government ministries and technology resources for their enhanced roles in the promotion of
and departments and their personnel working in policy and key decision- knowledge and practices regarding safe wastewater use.
making positions were contacted and their views on the relevance,
state, and requirement of knowledge on wastewater management and
safe wastewater use in their day-to-day engagements in delivering Table 6: Gaps in Programme Planning and Implementation Relating to Safe
the services were assessed. The information provided below is based Wastewater Use across Selected Water Sector Agencies
primarily on this survey, which was undertaken in a very short period
of time. The personnel in the government agencies identified gaps
on two levels: i) gaps in internalising and the safe use of wastewater
Levels of Gaps MOA MOP- MOH MOE DOI NARC
as an institutional agenda of the agencies, and ii) gaps in programme
&C PW
planning and implementation.
The gaps in internalising the safe use of wastewater as a regular
programme agenda stems essentially from the lack of an initiative on Relevance of Knowledge of High High High High High High
the part of the water sector agencies in considering the possibility of the Safe Use of Wastewater
wastewater use as an aspect of their water development programmes.
The Water Resources Strategy endorsed by the Government of Nepal in
Sectoral Policy Emphasis- NE Ade- Ade- Ade- NE NE
2002 envisions an integrated approach to water resource development,
ing/Encompassing Waste- quate quate quate
whereby exploring the possibility of wastewater recycling/use has been water Issue
identified as one of the alternatives to approaching/enhancing water
security, at least in areas known to face water scarcity. There have also
been, in general, adequate regulatory provisions and legislation to Resources (Material, Low Medi- Low Low Low Low
Technology, and Human um
promote the safe use of wastewater. Water quality standards for the
Resources) to Address Safe
safe use of wastewater in agriculture, aquaculture, livestock watering, Wastewater Use
recreation, and environmental uses, published in the Gazette of the
Government of Nepal in 2008, enforces the national commitment
to the promote safe use of wastewater. However, the emphasis on Programmes/Plans Promot- Low Low Low Low Low Low
ing Safe Wastewater Use
translating the policy emphasis into actual plans and programmes
for safe wastewater use has been largely lacking in most water sector
development agencies and also those concerned with health and Need for Institutional High High High High High High
environmental issues. Capacity Building on Safe
The gaps identified in the programme planning and implementation Wastewater Use

by relevant water sector agencies, as revealed by their key personnel, is

presented in Table 6. While the personnel in most water sector agencies
and those relating to health and the environment revealed a high level of NE: Non existent

244 245
8. Concluding Remarks management. On the other hand, gaps were identified at the level
of implementing policies, legislation and regulatory provisions
This case sought to present the state of waste water production and usage relating to the safe use of wastewater. Gaps were also noted at the
in the context of the Kathmandu valley and the existing policy guidelines level of institutional development and in internalising the problem
and regulatory frameworks regarding safe wastewater use in the country. of wastewater management as an important area of development
The last section of the case looked into the knowledge gap and the need intervention by water sector agencies.
for capacity building among farmers using the water, water sector agencies • The analysis noted a lack of emphasis on research and development
and their personnel regarding the safe use of wastewater in the country. in the country in improving the state of knowledge, practices,
This also attempted to draw on micro-level perspectives, especially the and solutions to wastewater management. There are only a small
traditional practices of wastewater use in the Kathmandu valley, and number of agencies and their personnel who have a limited level
therefore the need for the promotion of knowledge and practices for safe of engagement with research and development into wastewater
wastewater use management. The following conclusions emerge based use and management. This has been essentially due to the lack of
on the contents and analysis of this case: national emphasis on the promotion of wastewater use.
• The key conclusion emerging from the analysis is the need for
• Wastewater management and use in the Kathmandu valley were considering safe wastewater use as an important area of water
noted to be an age-old practice, intricately linked to the traditional sector development in the country. There are visible water
knowledge and wisdom of the people. Traditionally wastewater is stresses, especially in urban areas, emerging from dry season water
considered a ‘resource’ by the people while the development efforts uncertainty, groundwater depletion, and climatic variability. There
of water sector agencies relating to wastewater management have is an established potential of promoting wastewater use as a means
been essentially guided by the notion of considering wastewater of addressing water uncertainty and approaching water security at
a ‘nuisance’ and a key contributor to environmental pollution. This a local level. Considering emerging concerns on climate-induced
notion was found in sectoral and disciplinary perspectives in water water uncertainty in the country, especially concerns about the
system development, which is essentially guided by a technological likely depletion of water resources due to climate change, there
solution to all water problems. is a clear potential for considering safe wastewater use to be an
• Wastewater production in the Kathmandu valley was noted to important method of preparedness and adaptive strategies for
have increased significantly since 1970, especially in urban areas, possible future water security.
due to the accelerated increase in population, unplanned and
haphazard development of infrastructure and services for water
supply, sanitation, and wastewater management. The analysis also
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clearly revealed that the pace of development of infrastructure and
services for wastewater management has been largely inadequate ADB & GON. 2010. “Kathmandu Valley Water Supply and Wastewater System
and incomplete to meet the needs. Also, a centralised and Improvement: Project Feasibility Study Final Report.” Manila, the Philippines: Asian
technology-based solution to wastewater management was shown Development Bank (ADB).

to have failed in addressing the wastewater problem, especially in A.K. Shukla, U.R. Timilsina, and B.C. Jha. 2012. “Nepal Country Paper, Wastewater
the urban areas of the Kathmandu valley. Production, Treatment, and Use in Nepal.”
• The analysis noted a commitment at the policy level in addressing
Basnyat BB. 1999. “Fertilisers and the Environment in the Context of Nepal: How Big is
the problem of wastewater management in the country. The
the Problem?” Paper presented in the Workshop on Present Environmental Challenges
existing legislation and regulatory provisions were also noted to and Management of Pesticides, Chemical Fertilizers and Solid Wastes, Kathmandu,
be generally adequate to address the problems of wastewater Nepal, October, 3-4.

246 247
CBS. 1995. “A Compendium of Environmental Statistics of Nepal.” Ramshahpath, UNEP. 2001. “Nepal: State of the Environment 2001.” Kathmandu, Nepal: United
Kathmandu: Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and International Centre for Integrated Mountain
Development (ICIMOD).
CBS. 2011. “Preliminary Results of National Population Census 2011.” Ramshahpath,
Kathmandu: Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). WECS. 2010. “Concept Paper on Eco-Efficient Water Infrastructure Policy in Nepal.”
Water and Energy Commission Secretariat, Government of Nepal.
FAO. 2012. “Aquastat.” Accessed May12. www.fao.org/nr/water/aquastat/data/query/
results.html.

ICIMOD, MOEST/GON and UNEP. 2007. “Kathmandu Valley Environmental Outlook.”

International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Ministry of
Environment Science and Technology of Government of Nepal (MOEST/GON) and
United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP).

Mool PK, Bajracharya SR and Joshi SP. 2001. “Glacial Lakes and Glacial Lake Outburst
Flood Events in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region.” In Global Change and Himalayan
Mountains, edited by Shrestha KL. Lalitpur, Nepal: Institute for Development and
Innovation.

NPC. 2010. “Millennium Development Goal Needs Assessment for Nepal.” National
Planning Commission (NPC) and UNDP.

Nyachhyon BL. 2006. “Service Enhancement and Development of Sanitary Sewerage

System in Urban and Semi-Urban Settings of Nepal.” Economic Policy Network, Policy
Paper No. 23. Ministry of Finance, Government of Nepal and Asian Development Bank.

Palikhe BR. 1999. “Pesticide Management in Nepal: Implementation Issues and

Experiences.” Paper presented at a workshop on Present Environmental Challenges
and Management of Pesticides, Chemical Fertilizer and Solid Waste, October 3-4,
Kathmandu, organised by Society for Environmental Journalists, Nepal.

Ruthkowski T. 2004. “Study of Wastewater Irrigation in Kathmandu Valley.” Water Nepal,

11-2:63-71.

Sada R. 2010. “Processes and Consequences of Degradation of Hanumante River.”

Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis. Pokhara University, Nepal.

Sharma S, Bajracharya RM, Sitaula B K and Merz J. 2005. “Water Quality in the Central
Himalaya.” Current Science, 89-5:774-786.

Shrestha J. 2011. “Traditional Practices and Knowledge System in Integrated Wastewater

Management in Kathmandu Valley.” Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis. Pokhara University, Nepal.

UNDP. 2006. “Human Development Report- Beyond Scarcity: Power, Poverty and Global
Water Crisis.”

WECS. 2003. “Water Resource Strategy Nepal.” Water and Energy Commission
Secretariat (WECS), Government of Nepal.

248 249
CASE 14
Wastewater Reuse in Mendoza Province, Argentina
(Argentina)

Carlos Horacio Foresi 1

Abstract

In Mendoza Province, Argentina, treated wastewater has been reused

in agriculture for more than five decades. Factors driving the demand
for this resource for irrigation in this region are the infrequent rainfall
and aridity typical of a desert.
Situated in central-western Argentina, in the foothills of the Andes,
Mendoza records an average annual rainfall ranging from 200 mm to
250 mm depending on the latitude. All human activity and production
is concentrated on just 3.5 per cent of its surface area, which covers
148,827 km2, and around four man-made oases that exploit water from
the region’s rivers. There is a total of more than 500,000 cultivated
hectares where intensive agriculture takes place, the main crop being
grapevines for wine-making, followed by olive trees, stone and seed
fruit, vegetables, forestry and fodder.
In this context, water resources are in high demand from farmers,
especially considering that treated wastewater comes with guarantees
regarding quality control and the way it is used, to ensure against
unwanted effects on the soil or crops. Moreover, with this practice the
water is treated in effluent purification plants and nutrients are added

1
Carlos Horacio Foresi 
Water Resources Department, General Department of Irrigation, Mendoza, Argentina.
e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016
Translated from Spanish to English

251
to the soil, bringing an economic advantage which takes on greater their implementation by the Executive Office. Moreover, the General
significance in an arid area. However, what is needed in order to Department of Irrigation has administrative autonomy and manages
optimise this are the necessary conditions and expertise to maintain the water in Mendoza Province. Its main function in Mendoza is the general
soil’s fertility (organic, mineral and hydrogeological conditions) and to management of public water resources and it is also responsible for
obtain products that meet the health and hygiene standards required handling all matters related to water resource management, and the
by their place of destination, as well as ensuring preservation of the protection, distribution and regulation of water in natural and artificial
environment, all of which are necessary for wastewater to be used in a waterways. This institution has various roots in government and civil
controlled manner. To this end, the General Department of Irrigation society organisations and stems from colonial times. The General
in 2003 issued Resolution No. 400/03 of the Honourable Administrative Department of Irrigation, as we know it today, came into being in 1884
Tribunal, establishing mandatory regulations for designated ACREs with the passing of the General Water Act, stating: “The management
(Specialised Restricted Cultivation Areas). of water and the general fulfilment of this act will be under the direction
A significant percentage of the purification facilities in the province of the General Department of Water”. Ten years later, in 1894, the
currently provide treated effluents in an ACRE. In terms of surface area, Constitution of Mendoza Province renamed the General Department
approximately 7,000 ha are irrigated with wastewater in the summer of Water as the General Department of Irrigation, the name it still goes
and, consistent with population density, are concentrated mainly on the by today.
northern oasis. Eighty-five per cent of this surface area is regularised The feature of wastewater management in Mendoza that stands
by law and is managed by its users, with controls from the General out is that it is carried out together with users’ organisations called
Department of Irrigation. What remains is the important task of also Waterways Inspectorates (Inspecciones de Cauces)i which, whilst having
regularising winter reuse. In 2006 guidelines and requirements for this functional dependency on the General Department of Irrigation, are
are set out in Resolution No. 500/06 of the Honourable Administrative governed by a specific law i.e. “Law 6405” decreed by the Honourable
Tribunal. Legislature of Mendoza in 18 July 1996.
Keywords: agricultural reuse, ACRE, wastewater, irrigation It has already been said that agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas
such as Mendoza Province, depends almost exclusively on irrigation.
The demand for water for irrigation represents more than 80 per cent
of the total need for water. Likewise, continuing population growth also
1. Introduction means an increase in the demand for water, which adds to the pressure
of making sure that this resource is distributed properly. This means
An entire case is devoted to the General Department of Irrigation in that it is crucial to use this resource more efficiently, even more so when
section VI of the Constitution of Mendoza, which has been in force since we consider the drop in snowfall seen in recent years.
1916. This body’s mission is to manage and protect all available surface An available alternative that could lessen the strain on water
and groundwater resources in the province, taking into consideration resources is the reuse of treated urban effluents in agriculture. While
its various uses: drinking, irrigation, industry, energy, and recreation. this practice has been in development for more than 50 years in our
Within its uses, the reuse of treated wastewater in agriculture has province, it has only been regulated since 2003. This study provides a
become more clearly defined since the creation in 2012 of the Water description and analysis of the situation regarding the reuse of water
Reuse Department (Departamento Reusos Hídricos), whose primary in agriculture in the province to serve as a basis for decision-making by
purpose is the technical and administrative regularisation of ACREs. the various stakeholders involved.
The General Department of Irrigation is an independent body that has
independence for managing its own resources and is not financially
dependent on budget allocations from the Honourable Legislature or

252 253
2. Brief Historical Overview transformation including thriving high-tech farms that provide work for
hundreds of people in the 3,500 hectares of land that make up the ACRE.

2.1. Campo Espejo ACRE

The first sewage networks were installed in the capital of Mendoza Province
3. Factors that Have Influenced the Successful
in the 1920s. The untreated liquids were carried by gravity pipelines to
a state-owned uncultivated field situated several kilometres north of the Development of Wastewater Reuse in Mendoza
city. People started to call this field ‘Campo Espejo’ (Mirror Field), almost
certainly because of the brilliant shine, caused by deposited effluents,
which could be seen from far away. Soon after, established farmers in the 3.1. Demand
vicinity built unstable waterways to divert these liquids and irrigate crops.
Many years passed before the first primary treatment plant was Reference has already been made to the arid conditions of the
built (1976) by the company that provided drinking water and sewage province. In order for any crops to grow in Mendoza, irrigation must
services at the time, Obras Sanitarias de la Nación (OSN). This plant was be used to supplement the lack of rainfall. Faced with this situation,
later remodelled and extended but this did not succeed in reversing farmers are always alert to sources that may be of use to them,
the risk posed by using liquids with this level of treatment for irrigation. whether it be surface water from rivers or streams, groundwater, or
In 1994, a Unión Transitoria de Empresas privadas (UTE)ii won the reused water.
contract to build a new plant. The project to build waste stabilisation There is a great deal of interest in treated sewage because, as
ponds would be carried out in accordance with the WHO standards well as being available throughout the year in areas that do not have
for secondary treatment. Twelve sets of three ponds were constructed, registered irrigation rights, it brings with it nutrients and organic
with the UTE’s 20 year contract to treat the waste liquid for a period of matter that in turn reduce the costs of the fertilization that is so
20 years in mind. The conditions are now being reconsidered because necessary for skeletal and mineral soils like those found in Mendoza.
the terms of the contract have expired. Waters have been established This is most certainly a determining factor but this interest is also, of
below an ACRE which today covers a surface area of 3,000 hectares. course, closely tied to the quality of the water resource as farmers
are not willing to accept just any water. The quality of the treated
sewage is acceptable at the current level of treatment, but not for
2.2. Paramillo ACRE unrestricted irrigation.

At the beginning of the 1980s, another large sewage treatment plant

was built to collect water from Greater Mendoza. A set of four large 3.2. Management of Water Reuse by Waterways Inspectorates
ponds at a site situated some 30 kilometres to the east of the Campo
Espejo allowed the liquids to be properly purified and a new ACRE to It has already been stated that the Waterways Inspectorates are the
be developed in the surrounding area. This place, as its name (which authorities in charge of applying the Water Act 1884 and are responsible
comes from páramo, meaning wasteland) suggests, really was a barren for policing minor waterways.
wilderness given that no crops grew there due to a lack of rights or They are also involved in the technical and administrative
irrigation systems. Today, thanks to the organised utilisation of treated management of the ACREs that are irrigated with wastewater; added to
sewage and groundwater, Paramillo has undergone a transformation. its specific functions are some aspects that are regulated in Resolution
It should perhaps be renamed, given the remarkable nature of the 400/03 and that deal with operational matters.

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 This success has had and continues to have great bearing on the and Associations, taking care not to disrupt the consistency of their
sustainability of the ACREs given a strong normative framework, on the respective management by the legitimately constituted authorities).
one hand, and the continuity of more than a century of practice and
carrying out its functions. The Waterways Inspectorate of the Specialised Restricted Cultivation
The Waterways Inspectorates have three basic pillars that underpin Areas (ACREs), notwithstanding the other legal powers, should ensure
its continuity: the proper distribution and use of reuse water, making sure that it is
carried out within the perimeter of the ACRE. It should also check that
• Self-sufficiency and administrative autonomy: as they determine and regulations are observed in connection with the authorised crops and
implement their own budgets. The Users’ Assembly of the Waterways all activity associated with them.
Inspectorate meets twice a year: once in November to determine the The inspectorate should also use the regulatory framework to monitor
budget for inspection costs and the pro rata amount that users are the quality and volume of water distributed at the overflow point from
to contribute to pay for them the following year; and again in May to the purification plant to the ACRE before being reused. Every year, the
approve the budget accounts drawn up by the Waterways Inspectorate Waterways Inspectorate that oversees the technical and administrative
from the previous financial year. The Waterways Inspector manages the management of the ACRE should ask farmers to provide a sworn
finances of the inspection. All of this is done under the legal control of statement of the crops they are going to grow in their fields and inspect
the General Department of Irrigation as a higher water authority. them at random to check on this. When crops are not authorised, to
• Direct and representative democracy: users have the power to select ensure that they stop growing them, they issue a warning to initiate
the authorities of their canals. This system is a feature of the nature administrative action consisting of, firstly, a warning, then a fine, which
of the consortium reviewed by waterways inspectorates. Under this may lead to closure of the water source (irrigation turns or boreholes).
system, every four years the users elect by secret and mandatory vote Although this is the intended sanctions system, there have been no cases
those who will fill the role of administrator and legal representative of where it has been applied, but this could be due to the inaction of the
the consortium through the Waterways Inspector. But, notwithstanding Waterways Inspectorates.
the democratic election of this representative, the Users’ Assembly
can also deal with important aspects of the inspection.
• Monitoring by higher authorities: as the previous point shows, the 3.3. Works and Coordination
Waterways Inspectorate is subject to monitoring by the General
Department of Irrigation. This monitoring, in the context of the self- As is already known, for the reuse of water in agriculture to be sustainable
sufficient relationship, is limited to the legality of the performance over time, specific work must be carried out with regard to the purification
of the Inspection. This is provided for in article 23 of Law 6405, of liquids, such as in the area where water is reused (ACRE), that ensures
which lays out oversight duties via the Honourable Administrative water quality, efficiency and monitoring of its use. In Mendoza, sewage is
Tribunal of the General Department of Irrigation: approve the treated by a decentralised government company, Agua y Saneamiento
statutes of the inspectorate organisations; request books and Mendoza S.A. (AySAM SA), and irrigation is managed by another
documents to be shown as it deems necessary; solicit reports organisation, the General Department of Irrigation, which operates the
and arrange investigations ex officio or on request; verify that irrigation system through the corresponding Waterways Inspectorates.
mandatory precautions are fulfilled when appointing authorities; The crucial relationship between the two entities has not always been
appoint watchdogs for the Users’ General Assembly (ex officio or at properly coordinated, neither has there been an agreed criterion for
the request of the users when there are reasons serious enough to assigning funds to carry out works. Consequently, there are shortcomings
justify this) and the Superintendence (monitor the fulfilment of the in the maintenance of the plants and, furthermore, plans for future
responsibilities, duties and functions assigned to the Inspectorate expansion are made difficult by continuous population growth.

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4. Reuse of Treated Sewage in Mendoza This theoretical calculation is in line with the presence of ACREs in the
territory, shown in Table 2 (Source: prepared by the author).
The total volume of water treated in all of the purification plants in
Mendoza is, on average, approximately 5 m3/s. The current population
of the province is around 1,800,000 inhabitants (according to the 2010 Table 2: Surface Area of ACREs Irrigated with Treated Sewage in Mendoza
national census it was 1,741,610 inhabitants). Approximately 75 per
cent of this population has sewage services. The flow of water available
for irrigation in the ACREs is calculated by considering that in Mendoza
ACRE size SURFACE
400 litres of drinking water are used per day and that 80 per cent of
this returns to sewage, taking into account evapotranspiration in the
region and the potential efficacy of irrigation. Table 1 shows the values LARGE ACREs 6,300 hectares
of available sewage flow and the surface area that could be irrigated
with this. SMALL AND MEDIUM ACREs 600 hectares

ACREs to be created or formalised 200 hectares

Table 1: Water Available from Treated Sewage in Mendoza Province and
Viable Surface Area for Irrigation
TOTAL 7,100 hectares

ITEM QUANTITY UNIT

4.1 What is an ACRE?

Population of the province 1,800,000 inhabitants
Resolution No. 400/03 of the Honourable Administrative Tribunal
% served 0.75 75% of the General Department of Irrigation approves the regulation of
Specialised Restricted Cultivation Areas (ACREs) and establishes the
Overspill 0.320 m3/person/day parameters for determining the frequency of measurements in Annexes
I and II, which form an integral part of this Resolution.
It establishes or defines what is meant by the term ACRE. In Annex
Reused effluents 432,000 m3/day
I of the aforementioned document it is stated that:

Flow rate 5 m3/s

“Article 1.2. States that the purpose of the area referred to as an Area
de Cultivos Restringidos Especiales (Specialised Restricted Cultivation
Surface area, summer ACREs 7,142 ha Area) (ACRE) is for carrying out the controlled reuse of effluents from
a purification facility, which may be used within the framework of
Surface area, winter ACREs (x3) 21,428 ha sustainable development and which are completely prohibited from
being channelled outside of its boundaries or in any way released for
unrestricted use. The reuse of wastewater from purified effluents in
Source: prepared by the author the aforementioned areas is subject to the general principles relating

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 to the use of public water such as cost, efficient use, progressive 4.2. Winter ACREs
improvement of quality as well as those stated by this regulation.”
Mendoza’s climate is arid and continental, annual temperatures vary
A number of factors for consideration arise from an analysis of this considerably and rainfall is low. The summer is hot and humid, and it is
definition: the season with the most rainfall with average temperatures of above
25°C and maximum recorded temperatures reaching above 37°C.
• The controlled reuse of effluents from a purification plant is carried out The winter is cold and dry, with average temperatures falling below
in a defined area. Generally areas are chosen that do not have irrigation 8°C, minimum temperatures falling below 0°C, occasional night frosts,
licenses, so as to extend the borders of the cultivated area. There is and low rainfall. Snow and sleet are rare, usually occurring just once per
a great deal of industrial activity in Mendoza, a very high percentage year, although both are light in the highest areas of the city.
of which is in the agrifood industry, (wineries, factories producing fruit The evapotranspiration of crops fluctuates in midsummer between
and vegetable preserves, sweet factories, must concentrators, etc.) 4.5 and 7 mm/day, depending on factors such as altitude and latitude.
The limit placed on factories for sewage overspill is essentially related In the winter, evapotranspiration drops appreciably by three or four
to electrical conductivity, which must not exceed 3,000 µS. Virtually no times the summer values.
effluents containing heavy metals enter into the sewage system. Resolution No. 500/06 of the HTA establishes what are called ‘Winter
• The protection of soil, good farming practices, monitoring of ACRES’ which basically tend to achieve zero spillover. This regulation
authorised crops and the profitability of production should all allows new permits to be issued for wastewater to be used during a
be considered within a framework of sustainable development. period of six months (from April to October every year) and the fee or
The monitoring of soil quality has been carried out on several charge for its use is reduced to 50 per cent of the amount paid for a full
occasions as a basis for certain studies, but has not been carried out year. This type of permit has been issued for more than 1,100 hectares in
systematically by the General Department of Irrigation. In the ACREs the Paramillo ACRE and some 200 hectares in the Campo Espejo ACRE.
there is a network of strategically placed piezometers that allow the
phreatic level of groundwater to be assessed and such monitoring to
be carried out methodically.
• Reuse water is prohibited from being channelled outside of the ACRE, 5. Current Strengths and Weaknesses
favouring what is known as ‘zero overspill’ (­vuelco cero)iii . This aspect is
dealt with in more detail in the following section. Wastewater reuse The fact that the General Department of Irrigation has for a number
has emerged naturally in Mendoza due to users’ interest in replacing of years taken over exclusive responsibility for the management of
groundwater, which is more expensive, with sewage. Furthermore, areas where treated wastewater is reused, it represents an important
as ACREs are generally located in areas that do not have irrigation milestone. Previously, the fragmented and overlapping nature of
rights, in some cases treated sewage is the only available resource for the regulations, or the inaction (often due to a lack of resources) of
cultivating crops. Consequently, the state does not need to promote various organisations involved tangentially, threatened its efficient
wastewater reuse. management and development. Today, no one disputes that managing
• The principles of public water usage include: cost, efficient use and ACREs, above all the two large ones (Campo Espejo and Paramillo)
improving quality. with many users and covering large surface areas is a matter for the
General Department of Irrigation; nevertheless, it is generally accepted
It should be noted that in the summer demand exceeds supply. New that they could improve their performance of this task.
licenses can only be issued in the winter, when there is surplus effluent Another success has been without any doubt the way that ACREs have
because crops need significantly less water. been managed by Waterways Inspectorates. This feature has brought

260 261
continuity, transparency and participation to the management process. manage reuse areas; the practice of farmers who for decades have
Nevertheless, the inspectorates must improve their management, used treated sewage and are aware of the associated risks and the care
complying fully with the obligations set out in Law 6405. that must be taken when managing it.
In the case of ACREs small work projects can be carried out by the Expertise related to its management has been a result of many years
administration with funds from the inspectorate; another possibility is of farmers irrigating their land with treated sewage. Added to this are the
for medium-sized projects to be carried out by water sub-delegations related official recommendations made by the General Department of
and later reimbursed by irrigation farmers. In the case of large Irrigation and other associated organisations. In any event, assemblies
projects, the province bids on and finances the works with national or have been set up where users can be educated more fully about water-
international funds that are also reimbursed by users who enjoy a grace borne diseases and the care that needs to be taken to treat liquids so that
period lasting years and longer deadlines. acceptable results are achieved that fall within the values required by
The quality of the wastewater carried to ACREs through irrigation the existing rules and regulations which, in spite of their shortcomings,
generally falls within the required parameters for secondary treatment. provide a defined administrative and legal operational framework. In
Nevertheless, due to a lack of investment in some of the facilities of Mendoza, water is not charged by volume but by the surface area,
the company that deals with drinking water and sanitation in Mendoza, and the rate at which it is supplied to properties varies according to
AySAM SA, and in plants operated by municipalities, wastewater does not how much water is available, which is essentially the snowfall in the
reach the required standard of quality (case of Algarrobal, Tupungato). Andes each year. In all cases, whether the water is clean or treated, the
The cost of treating sewage is covered by the users of drinking water, amount charged by the inspectorates corresponds to the service they
in other words towns and cities. The General Department of Irrigation provide to ensure the water reaches farmers, the cost of the inspector’s
sells the raw water to AySAM (Agua y Saneamiento Mendoza) or other pay, tomeros (which distribute the water in each irrigation channel or
water and sewage service operators. These companies deliver the gate), operating machinery, maintaining waterways, etc.
treated water for free back to the General Department for Irrigation, Although it must be recognised that significant steps have been
which establishes the ACREs and charges the users an irrigation fee. taken towards the technical and administrative regulation of ACREs
The General Department of Irrigation actually solves a problem for such as the registration of users, managing charges for water use,
these operators as it has better administrative and technical resources monitoring authorised crops, and organising irrigation water rotation
for dealing with the final disposal of the liquids. schedules, we can and should continue to work towards perfecting this
unique production system stemming from wastewater reuse that has
such value today that it competes with other traditional water sources.
In this context, some actions, if implemented, could improve the
6. Conclusion integrated systems of treatment:

In Mendoza, a number of favourable coexisting circumstances enable • Planning and coordination. Today, there is practically no planning or
treated wastewater to be reused successfully in agriculture: the climatic coordination; in Mendoza, a company that deals with drinking water
conditions, which as has already been mentioned make water a and sanitation is in operation (AySAM SA); other sewage service
scarce resource that is in high demand for farmers: the existence of a operators include councils, cooperatives and neighbourhood
body such as the General Department of Irrigation with more than a associations. A regulatory body (E.P.A.S.)  v
intervenes and the
hundred years’ experience in water management (it should be clarified General Department of Irrigation manages all water.
that in 2012 Resolution No. 293/12iv was issued by the Honourable • Reformulation of the ACREs Follow-up Committee vi
Administrative Tribunal); users’ organisations (Waterways Inspectorates) • Review of the current regulations that contain some inconsistencies,
consolidated over time, with the technical and operative capacity to overlap and omissions

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• Research into the quality of production and health, with the 2001. “Boletín Oficial de la Provincia de Mendoza” (in Spanish). November 2.
participation of local universities
• Training for farmers
• Construction works in purification facilities and ACREs i
Waterways Inspectorates: non-profit public entities that enjoy self-sufficiency and the
• Active participation of other organisations linked to reuse full capacity to act in the domains of both public and private law. They select their own
officials and draw up their own budgets, in accordance with the provisions of article 187
of the Provincial Constitution. They are fully-fledged organizations set up for all users
If the proposed objectives are achieved, agricultural reuse in Mendoza who hold the right to use public water, which is provided by way of a single waterway
will come to be of significant strategic importance for increasing the or a designated system of waterways. Their powers and functions are governed by Law
6405 and other related laws. The management, use, control, conservation, maintenance
efficiency and utilisation of water resources, mitigating the effects of and protection of canals, small irrigation channels and drains in the Province, as well as
climate change. It will also offer improvements in guaranteeing water the water that is carried by them, will be the responsibility of the Waterways Inspectorate,
given that treated sewage is produced all year round and the flow is subject to the provisions in the sixth section of the single case - the General Department
of Irrigation - of the Provincial Constitution.
practically continuous. In addition to the quantity, with ACREs that are
correctly managed and monitored, safe use is guaranteed from a health ii
UTE: UTEs are a form of business collaboration for undertaking projects, works or
point of view. services that are too large in scope for just one company.
Finally, the Mendoza case study will encourage socioeconomic iii
Zero overspill (vuelco cero): established in an agreement signed between the General
development given that the reuse of treated sewage enhances the Department of Irrigation and Obras Sanitarias Mendoza S.A. in 2000, called the “Convenio
cultivated oasis and generates new job opportunities. Marco para la Implementación de la Política de Vuelco Cero y la Conformación de Áreas
de Cultivos Restringidos Especiales (A.C.R.E.)” (The Framework Agreement for the
Implementation of the Zero Overspill Policy and the Formation of Specialized Restricted
Cultivated Areas (ACREs)), with the aim of reorganizing the reuse of effluents through
the implementation of this policy, and so extending the cultivated surface area in the
province. The zero overspill policy involves the prohibition of effluent or surplus effluent
References after irrigation being channelled outside of the boundaries of the ACRE. This condition
does not fully apply with the production of residual effluent due to the decrease in water
General Department of Irrigation (Departamento General de Irrigación). 2003. needed for the winter cultivation of crops.
Resoluction No 400/03 del Honorable Tribunal Administrativo, Reglamento de Áreas de
Cultivos Restringidos Especiales (in Spanish). iv
Resolution No. 293/12 establishes the Department of Water Reuse on the organization
chart, putting emphasis on specific functions including identifying feasible areas for reuse,
General Department of Irrigation (Departamento General de Irrigación). 2006. monitoring the physical, chemical and biological parameters of effluents, monitoring of
Resoluction No 500/06 del Honorable Tribunal Administrativo, faculta la creación de
crops, work projects in ACREs, etc.
ACREs de Invierno (in Spanish).
v
Magnani, Cesar. 1991. “Administración de las Aguas en la Provincia de Mendoza. Provincial Water and Sanitation Organization (Ente Provincial del Agua y Saneamiento).
Descentralización y participación de los usuarios como rasgos determinantes de la vi
gestión hídrica de regadío” (in Spanish). Thesis, University of Mendoza. This committee, made up of representatives from the organizations involved in reuse,
monitors the ACREs and proposes actions to improve performance; until now, it has not
Obras Sanitarias Mendoza S.A. 1997. “Depuración y reuso de efluentes cloacales, Folleto been correctly implemented..
de Divulgación” (in Spanish). Mendoza.

Pinto ME, Rogero GE, and Andino MM. 2006. “Ley de Aguas de 1884” (in Spanish),
commented and agreed, 1st ed. Mendoza: Irrigación Edita.

1993. “Ley de Reordenamiento Institucional. Sector Agua Potable y Cloacas” (in Spanish).
Law 6044/93.

Centro de Ingenieros de Mendoza. 2004. “Áreas de Cultivos Restringidos Especiales-Ing.

León Kotlik” (in Spanish).

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CASE 15
Varamin Project: A Wastewater Reuse Success
Story from Iran (Iran)

Mohammad Javad Monem 1

Abstract

Limited water resources, increasing water requirements and competition

over water resource consumption in different sectors have become
major challenges. Much has been done to find new sources of water.
Population growth and urbanisation have produced more wastewater,
which could be considered as a new source of water. This source of
water is important for agricultural production, which is the greatest
water-consuming sector. In the past, wastewater was used mainly to
increase the fertility of the land. Nowadays the main motivation for
wastewater reuse is water shortages. Wastewater reuse in agriculture
involves several considerations in terms of the quantity and quality
of the wastewater. The impact of wastewater reuse on health, the
environment, soil, crop and other surface and groundwater resources
should be carefully investigated.
Specific monitoring activities should be taken into account, and
high standards for wastewater reuse should be implemented. The
economic, social and agricultural evaluations are important aspects
which are central to the investigations. Iran is a water-scarce country,
urbanisation is increasing and its population is growing; therefore, the

1
Mohammad Javad Monem 
Associate Professor, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

267
country is planning for more wastewater reuse in agriculture. The to protect human health, preserve the environment, and prevent soil
Varmin irrigation project is a successful example of such a plan. The and water pollution. While in developing countries, in addition to
initial wastewater reuse system was established in 1988. Due to the treated wastewater, raw sewage is also used for agricultural production.
deteriorating conditions of water shortage, a development plan for Developing countries lack the proper strategy and plans as well as
increasing the capacity of wastewater reuse is underway that will be specific instructions on the use of wastewater, which as a consequence
completed with the collaboration of the private sector. Presently 120 increases the health and environmental risks, as well as water and soil
million cubic meters of wastewater are used in the Varamin irrigation pollution.
network, which will be increased to up to 280 million cubic meters after
the completion of the development plan.
Keywords: wastewater, irrigation, health risks, water use efficiency,
private sector 2. Effects of Using Wastewater for Irrigation

Many studies have shown that the consistent use of urban wastewater
in addition to expanding vegetation, on the one hand, prevents
1. Background environmental pollution and, on the other hand, reduces the costs of
using fertilisers due to the high levels of nutrients. Researchers suggest
Population growth, improving living standards and welfare, and climate that appropriate levels of wastewater reuse improve the physical
change have led to their being less water per person worldwide. Iran condition of soil while providing a considerable amount of necessary
is located in an arid region and the water shortage crisis threatens the fertiliser, but too much wastewater is harmful for crops and decreases
area more seriously and has passed the water stress limit. Among other the performance and quality of the crops.
sectors, the agricultural sector is the top water consumer. About 70% of The proper utilisation of municipal sewage reduces pollution in
accessible world freshwater is used in agricultural activities, while this surface water and preserves water resources. The effluents are available
figure is 92% in Iran. near urban centres and provide the potential to increase agricultural
More fresh water can be prepared by improving water use efficiency, production around cities, which are a promising market for farmers.
increasing storage capacities, applying modern water harvesting The impacts of wastewater reuse for agriculture on health, soil, and
methods, and water and wastewater treatment. crops should be carefully taken in to account. The accumulation of high
Even though the amount of water and wastewater treated compared toxic substances in the soil and in plants and animals and their entry into
with total water requirements in agriculture is low, it could still be a the human food chain are important issues for human health and need
substitute for high quality water, and result in the allocation of high to be considered. When reusing sewage, in addition to chemicals, the
quality water for more important purposes such as drinking water. transmission of infectious agents such as bacteria, parasites, (protozoa
Urbanisation is increasing worldwide and more wastewater is and worms) and viruses must also be considered.
produced each day. Due to a low awareness of the benefits of The impact of wastewater on soil quality in arid areas, with high
wastewater treatment, wastewater is not considered an important temperature, low humidity and high evaporation, is of particular
source of water in water resource planning. Limited water resources, importance. The physical and mechanical properties of soil, such as
the increased volume of wastewater production, and the improvement strength, porosity, structure and hydraulic conductivity, are sensitive
of general awareness regarding the issues, has attracted the attention to ion exchange. A major concern in the use of treated wastewater
of water stakeholders in order for wastewater to be used wisely. In to irrigate crops is the presence of dangerous compounds with high
developed countries sewage treatment reuse is carried out in line concentrations, such as many rare and sustainable materials, organic
with environmental regulations. The centrepiece of this legislation is and complex configurations, and micro pollutants in the irrigation water.

268 269
 The reuse of wastewater can cause the following positive and
negative effects: reduce the pressure on water resources, reducing
the cost of agricultural water, reducing costs of fertilisers, increasing
agricultural production, reducing environmental pollution, and access
to cheaper sources of water for drinking and sanitation.
The environmental side effects of reusing wastewater include: imbalance
in wastewater supply and agricultural demand which will be harmful to the
environment by releasing unused wastewater in nature, increased risk of
some harmful and toxic substances, and social and psychological adverse
effects of wastewater reuse for agricultural crop production.

3. Monitoring

The monitoring of a wide range of water quality parameters is essential

for the safe use of wastewater in agriculture. The annual monitoring of
chemical and biological parameters, both before and after irrigation,
is essential. Changes may be associated with sources of wastewater,
treatment processes, population variations, and changes in industrial
Figure 1: Location of the Varamin plain and Tehran Canal (Tehran Regional Water Company 2012)
capacities; therefore, monitoring methods should be adjusted
accordingly. Monitoring should include all processes and installations
The Varamin network consists of 82 km of main and secondary
including: treatment of plant installations, transmission, and distribution
canals and 384 km of distributary canals (Figure 2). The total annual
systems, surface and ground waters, soil, plants, and the health status
water requirement of the Varamin Irrigation network is about 600
of workers, farmers and the public in accordance with acceptable
million cubic meters, which was supposed to be supplied by the Lar
standards in their entirety.
Dam on the Jajroo driver and groundwater. Due to the expansion of
the capital city and the rise in domestic water requirements, a portion
of the Lar reservoir was allocated to Tehran, which was supposed
to be substituted by treated wastewater from the Southern Tehran
4. Introduction to the Varamin Irrigation Project treatment plant.
The agricultural areas south of Tehran are located near the largest
Feasibility studies for the Varamin Irrigation Project for 50,000 consumer market for crop production. This helps farmers to produce
hectares of land were carried out in 1971 by the Food and Agriculture more profitable crops (vegetables). Varamin plain is one of the major
Organization (FAO). Supplementary studies were conducted by centres of vegetable production.
Mahab Ghods Consulting Engineers Co. from 1971 to 1973. Executive A significant level of land for growing vegetables is directly irrigated
work started in 1975 and ended in 1988 and the networks came into by sewage. Watering vegetables is mainly done by flooding, and
operation after that. Figure 1 shows the location of the project (Tehran water directly contacts the plants and in some cases the entire plant is
Sewerage Company 2012). submerged.

270 271
Figure 2: South Tehran Treatment plant, Tehran Canal, and Varamin Irrigation Network (Yekom Consulting
Engineering Company 2007)
Figure 3: Tehran Canal after the South Tehran Treatment Plant (Yekom Consulting Engineering
Company 2007)
Due to the presence of chemical elements and various microbial agents
in the wastewater, the entry of harmful elements into the tissues of Due to the lack of a wastewater collection system in Tehran and a
plants and microbes transmitted by the product is very likely. Since in delay in completing the South Treatment Plant, the design objective was
many cases vegetables are washed only with water, are not disinfected, not achieved. Therefore the consumption of ground water increased
and are eaten raw, the potential risks to public health are high. significantly and the groundwater table declined more than the
One of the most important design components of the Varamin allowable limit on the Varamin plain and has reached the critical limit.
Irrigation network is the Tehran Canal with the length of 36 km, and According to the latest studies the average annual groundwater level
a design capacity of 8 cubic meters per second see Figure 3 (Yekom decline on the Varamin plain, with an area of 1,112 ha., has reached
Consulting Engineering Company 2007).This canal was intended 1.47 m, and annual groundwater reservoir depletion is 49 million cubic
to supply 200 million cubic meters of treated wastewater from the meters. The 10 km long Afsarieh canal with a capacity of 4 CMS was
Tehran Southern treatment plant per year, 50 million cubic meters constructed to convey the eastern sewage of Tehran to the Varamin
for groundwater artificial recharge, and 150 million cubic meters for plain. Nearly 4 km of the Tehran Canal passes through residential areas.
agricultural consumptions. Therefore about 25 to 30 percent of water For environmental, social, health, and safety considerations this portion
requirements for the project were supposed to have been provided of the canal is built as a concrete box. Figure 4 shows the division point
through wastewater recycling. of the Varamin irrigation network.

272 273
 5. Development Plan

The working capacity of the Tehran Canal during recent years was 4
CMS, conveying about 120 million cubic meters of effluent from the
treatment plant to the Varamin plain. With the completion of 6 units of
the southern treatment plant since 2010, and the completion of 8 units
in the near future, the annual effluent of the treatment plant will reach
up to 280 million cubic meters at a maximum rate of 13 CMS. In order
to increase the capacity for using effluent from the treatment plant, a
Figure 4: Varamin Network Division Point (Tehran Sewerage Company 2012) comprehensive development plan is put forward and thorough studies
on the agricultural, social, environmental, technical and economic
After 25 years of constructing the Tehran canal, the rural area around aspects have been carried out.
the canal has expanded, which has imposed many limitations and The main component of the development plan is the construction of
alterations on the canal (Figure 5). Although the initial capacity of the a pipeline to convey treated wastewater from the Tehran South Water
Tehran canal was 8 CMS, due to alterations and the lack of appropriate Treatment Plant to the Varamin plain. This pipeline, laid next to the
maintenance, the present capacity is much less than that. Tehran Canal, is connected to the south wastewater treatment plant’s
effluent point in Shahre Rey and continues all the way down to Varamin.
The total length of the pipe line is 36 km.
By implementing this project, an extra 9 CMS of wastewater will be
conveyed to the plains of Varamin, Pakdasht and Shahre Rey. The plant’s
maximum effluent rate is 13 CMS, 4 CMS of which is currently conveyed
to the Varamin plain by the existing Tehran Canal. This system conveys
an annual amount of 280 million cubic meters of wastewater from the
south treatment plant to those plains, which is used for agricultural
irrigation (230 million cubic meters) and groundwater artificial recharge
(50 million cubic meters).The system has an intake at the exit point
of the wastewater treatment plant and a GRP pipeline (3 meters in
diameter by 36 km in length), which will be laid adjacent to the present
Tehran Canal. The depth of the ditch will be between 5 to 7 meters.
The round-the-clock regulation of wastewater fluctuations will be
damped by three pools at the end of the line, with a total capacity of
120 thousand cubic meters.

6. Mechanisms of Financing the Project

The estimated cost of the project is 1,600 billion Iranian Rials. The
Figure 5: Tehran Canal Passing a Residential Area (Tehran Sewerage Company 2012) funding of the project will be undertaken by a private sector financer.

274 275
The Build-Operate-Transfer BOT agreement and guaranteed purchase References
of effluent from the private sector over a period of 15 years was on
California State Water Resources Control Board, 2990, Department of Land, Air and
the agenda of the Tehran Regional Water Company. A public call for Water Resources. 1985. Irrigation with Reclaimed Municipal Wastewater: A Guidance
tenders in newspapers was announced, and 21 private investor pre- Manual. Edited by G. Stuart Pettygrove and Takashi Asano. Davis, California: Lewis
qualification tender documents were received from the companies. Publishers, Inc.

It was decided to attract private sector initiatives by providing Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 1992. “Wastewater
ownership of up to 30 million cubic meters of wastewater per year to treatment and use in agriculture.” Publication No. 24. Rome: FAO.
the investor. Also, the government proposed pre-buying effluent for a Planning and Guidance Control Deputy President. 2009. “Guideline for studies of plans
transitional period of one year from the investor. In addition the private for urban and rural treated wastewater reuse” (in Persian). Publication No. 434.
sector requires guarantees for the repayment of the investment by the Tehran Regional Water Company. 2012. “Pipeline from Tehran wastewater treatment
Central Bank of Iran, and assurance for the water price. plant to Varamin plain.” Project brochure.

Tehran Sewerage Company. 2012. “Description of Tehran metropolitan sewerage

Project.”

World Health Organization of the United Nations (WHO). 1989. “Health guidelines for
7. Summary/Conclusion the use of wastewater in agriculture and aquaculture.” Report of a WHO scientific group,
Technical Report Series 77. Geneva, Switzerland.
Increasing water demand and high competition over water use Yekom Consulting Engineering Company. 2007. “Development plan of saline, brackish,
in different sectors have made it necessary to search for new water and unusual water use in water basins of the country” (in Persian). Report No. 6,
Appropriate policies and strategies for saline, brackish, and unusual water use.
resources. Population growth and increased urbanisation have led
to more wastewater production. Wastewater is considered as a new
water resource especially for agricultural use. Several important
considerations regarding environment, health, social, and economic
issues should be taken into account for the wise use of wastewater in
agriculture. High standards for the monitoring, design, execution, and
operation of the whole process should be developed and implemented.
The development plan for wastewater reuse in the Varamin irrigation
network in Iran is a good example of such a project. Using the capacity
of the private sector for investment in the project, along with providing
required guarantees and incentives, was a successful approach for the
Varamin irrigation network.

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CASE 16
Council for Certification of Irrigation with Treated
Water in Mexico (Mexico)

Carlos Antonio Paillés Bouchez 1

Abstract

The development of Wastewater Treatment Plants for Agricultural

Irrigation in Mexico and Latin America has taken a long road, starting
in Belem, Brazil, in 1999. Implementing more than 30 of them as Pilot
Projects in the states of Oaxaca, Puebla and Hidalgo, with demonstrative
irrigation parcels has not been enough to create replications by the
local water and agricultural organizations. The Culture of Water in
our countries does not include the importance of the treatment of
wastewater. By 1950 less than 10% of wastewater was treated. By 2000
this percentage had not reached 25%. The concept of the reuse of
such water is extremely limited, including Engineering, Agriculture
and Economic Schools. In communities where the pilot projects
were implemented, less than 1% of the people, including teachers
and government officers, knew about the Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture (SUWA). At the same time, thousands of hectares were
irrigated with untreated wastewater with some kind of participation by
national and local governments. Prohibition by itself has never worked
in the world. In the last 15 years, the Certification of Competences in
México has been accepted by workers, farmers, corporations, labour

1
Carlos Antonio Paillés Bouchez 
Environmental Infrastructure Trust of the Valley of Hidalgo, Hidalgo, Mexico
e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016

279
unions and government agencies as a good instrument to qualify solution. Six Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) in the rural towns
persons in charge of specific activities. The establishment of the of Ixtlán and Capulalpam, in the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca, which have
Council for the Certification of Irrigation with Treated Water in Mexico been operated without interruption by the same farmers in these the
intends to promote the day-to-day, person-to-person, acceptance of towns since 2003, are real examples of these options. The political riots
SUWA objectives. of 2006-2007 in Oaxaca interrupted this positive trend. In 2008 the
Keywords: capacity building, agricultural irrigation, environmental Federal Government (CONAGUA) took the decision to build a Macro
health, food safety WWTP in Atotonilco to treat wastewater from the Valley of Mexico
(35,000 lps, the largest in the world). In the same year CONAGUA
and the State of Hidalgo signed a Framework Agreement with the
Environmental Infrastructure Trust Fund for the Valleys of Hidalgo to
1. Introduction establish ten or more WWTP pilot projects for SUWA purposes, to
prepare the local communities for this new option of treated water for
Mexico has the largest agricultural surface irrigated with untreated agriculture.
wastewater in the world (90,000 hectares in one single irrigation system) Within the many operational points to be developed in these pilot
(CONAGUA 2015). projects, one important asset required special attention: the capacity
The construction in 1900 of a 32 km tunnel, 6 m in diameter, to take construction and the competences certification for the correct and
rainwater and the wastewater from Mexico City was a civil engineering appropriate management of treated wastewater for agricultural
triumph at the time, without any kind of sanitary/health/agricultural/ irrigation. It took 2 years to develop and complete the process for the
environmental prevention within the following 100 years, especially in constitution of the Comite de Gestión de Competencias para Riegos
the Tula River Basin, where the water was delivered. Two consecutive Agrícolas Tecnificados con Aguas Residuales Tratadas (Council for the
droughts in 1976-77 gave room for temporary authorization by the Certification of Irrigation with Treated Water in Mexico), including the
Mexican Government to deviate this water to the irrigation system of publication in the Official Newspaper (Diario Oficial de la Federación
the Mezquital Valley. This temporary deal has been extended to the 2015). This case is an attempt to share our points of view and the
present. experience we gathered during the establishment of the process.
In August 1999, two United Nations (UN) agencies, the United
Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) and the Economic
Commission for Latin American (ECLA), with the close participation
of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture 2. Significant historical events
Organization (FAO), the World Bank and the Inter-American
Development Bank (IADB), invited the water organizations of the 1800s: US population grew from 5 million to 75 million. Primary
continent to present alternatives for water treatment based around the Development: Collection Systems. Primary Purpose: Disease Prevention.
Safe Use of Wastewater in Agriculture (SUWA) options in rural towns, Treatment was mostly dilution into receiving waters.
during a workshop held at Belem, Brazil. The Mexican proposal,
presented by one of the Environmental Trust Funds, was endorsed 1887: First biological treatment, an intermittent sand filter, was installed
by the IADB in 2000 and included in the brand new Program for the in Medford, Massachusetts.
Sustainability of the Water and Sanitation Systems (PROSSAPyS) in
rural communities (CONAGUA 2001). 1899: First federal regulation of Sewage, Rivers and Harbours
The implementation of 20 pilot projects in the states of Oaxaca and Appropriations (“Refuse Act”) prohibiting discharge of solids to
Puebla demonstrated the capabilities and limitations of this kind of navigational waters without permit from US Army Corps of Engineers.

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1900s (early): 1 million people served by 60 sewage treatment plants Emerging Trends: Wastewater Reuse, Non-Potable, Separate
for removal of settling and floating solids. Trend: population growth Distribution Indirect Potable, Direct Potable Local Regulation. Energy
and sewer construction Recovery (Biofuels, Co-Generation, Fertiliser), Conservation of
Energy (Aeration, Pumping, Mechanical Solids Processing, Heating,
1900–1930s: Sewered population increased at same rate as total Embedded Materials).
population. Trend: development of secondary (biological) treatment.

1909: First Imhoff tank (solids settling) (Cooper 2003).

3. Patterns for WWTP for Agricultural Irrigation as
1914: First liquid chlorination process for effluent disinfection.
per WHO SUWA Guidelines
1916: First activated sludge plant, San Marcos, Texas.
In the historical references the predominance of WWTPs aimed at
1920–1940s: Wastewater treatment linked with importance of returning treated water to rivers, lakes and seas was outlined. The
dissolved oxygen to aquatic life, aesthetic properties of surface waters Activated Sludge model was repeated several times, probably in up
(odour, colour, solids), measurement of organic matter in sewage as to two-thirds of cases, throughout the twentieth century, and the first
biological oxygen demand (BOD). Increased wastewater treatment 15 years of the twenty-first century. The most important part of this
meant increased residuals (sludge). Elimination of Nutrients. model is the elimination of nutrients (Sanitation District of Los Angeles
County 2011). With this elimination, the most important value of the
1960: Milestone. 50% of US population had access to some form of wastewater is disregarded. More importantly, trying to use treated
wastewater treatment. water in agricultural irrigation without nutrients and plenty of
chemicals, such as chlorum, is complicated, useless and sometimes
1960–present: Trend: Treatment process advances to improve receiving counterproductive.
water quality. The current SUWA guidelines issued by the WHO (2006) are based
Nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) removal. New process on the six points shown in Figure 1:
configurations: high-rate activated sludge processes, high-purity
oxygen, sequencing batch reactors, high-rate trickling filters and hybrid • Acknowledgement of the agricultural nutrition values of many of
trickling filter-activated sludge processes, membrane bioreactors. the components of domestic wastewater.
Trend: Regulation. • Complete knowledge of the many contaminants of the wastewater
and existing risks in their use.
1972–present: Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments (PL • Complete knowledge of the agricultural irrigation process, from
92-500, known as the Clean Water Act) et seq. until 2002. CWA summary, the initial sequences of the wastewater to the absorption processes
Water Quality Standards for receiving water (based on designated uses within the different crops, passing through the most important filter
and related human health and aquatic life criteria). Antidegradation in the world, the soil, including all irrigation technologies.
policy with environmental monitoring. If WQS not met: plan (strategies • Simultaneous consideration of different health hazards, (human,
and controls) to improve impaired water using Total Maximum Daily vegetal, animal, environmental, etc.).
Load (TMDL) approach. Control of toxins, industrial pre-treatment • Adequate use of the risk management process.
sludge. Biosolids disposal. Section 404 (Wetlands protection). State • Historical, geographical and social conditions of wastewater use (or
Revolving Funds. management).

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Figure 1: Examples of options for the reduction of viral, bacterial and protozoan pathogens by Figure 2: WWTP with quinoa crop (Acoculco, Hgo.)
different combinations of health protection measures that achieve the health-based target of ≤ 10-6
DALYs per person per year

In 1999-2000, with these considerations in mind, the Environmental

Infrastructure Trust Fund made a full review of the various alternatives for
the treatment of wastewater in 12 different countries, with the emphasis
on agricultural reuse. Checking the research papers of the WHO SUWA
guidelines, special attention was paid to the differentiation of crops in
relation to irrigation and systemic processes. The operational substance
of the guidelines is briefly explained in the next few paragraphs.

There are three different kinds of crops, as per SUWA patterns.

A. Trees and large bushes, which requires basic control devices for
the correct use of treated wastewater and adequate management.
B. Large, medium and small stem crops, (corn, quinoa, beans,
tomatoes, broccoli, etc.), which require specific biological treatment
Figure 3: WWTP with tomato crop (Tecamachalco, Pue.)
processes for the wastewater to reach a 75-80% level, (secondary
treatment), drip irrigation to avoid human contact with treated
water, and adequate crop management. C. Leaf and root vegetables, on which treated water makes contact
with the edible product (lettuce, spinach, carrots, beets, etc.),
They represent roughly 70% of the world’s edible crops, as illustrated requiring qualified tertiary treatment, in addition to the secondary
in Figures 2 and 3: treatment, to reach a 97-99% level.

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They represent roughly 20% of the world’s edible crops, as illustrated 4. Wastewater Treatment Plants for SUWA
in Figures 4 and 5:
Purposes Under the State/Federal/Municipal
Framework, 2008-2013

With the signature of a Framework Agreement between the Hidalgo

State Water and Sanitation Commission and the Environmental
Infrastructure Trust Fund (FIAVHI), with the testimonial participation of
CONAGUA, for the implementation of 10 initial WWTPs for agricultural
reuse, an important prospect was developed for the implementation
and evaluation of the SUWA’s potential impact in the largest group of
untreated irrigation districts in the world: the Mezquital Valley.
The fourth of those ten WWTPs, San José Acoculco, within the
Atotonilco de Tula Municipality, was developed together with an
agricultural farmers’ organisation, Ejido Progreso, including secondary
Figure 4: Spinach crop with protective soil cover and tertiary processes, directly receiving wastewater from the Valley of
Mexico, 900 meters from the largest WWTP in the world, Atotonilco
de Tula, to provide CONAGUA, the State of Hidalgo, the different
municipalities surrounding the valley, and, very importantly, the large
number of agricultural users of untreated wastewater (more than
90,000), with management, maintenance, production yields, sanitation
controls, and the many different parameters of a real WWTP under SUWA
guidelines, to be considered in the Macro WWTP being implemented.
The San José Acoculco WWTP, a pilot project, was completed in 2011
to treat 500,000 litres per day (5 lps) to irrigate 20 ha, and has been
in daily operation since then (4 years), as shown in Figure 6, with the
following results:

Figure 5: Vegetable crops ready for the local market

Specific design patterns were obtained and patented for the B and C
processes, (secondary & tertiary) and implemented in different WWTPs
(90% type B and 10% type C). Figure 6: WWTP at San José Acoculco, Hgo.

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4.1. Treatment Levels 4.1.2. Tertiary Treatment

4.1.1. Secondary Treatment A combination of coagulation and flocculation processes generate floccules
of organic matter, mainly nutrients, which are sent to 20 decantation canals,
Five independent reactors, designed to retain the different bacterial each with the correct valve, for demonstrative and operative controls (5 to
colonies at their maximum, provide treated wastewater which meets the 100%) of their elimination. Once the percentage level is decided, the water
Log10 pathogen reduction recommended by WHO-SUWA, (Examples enters an artificial precipitation chamber to receive additional oxygenation
of options for the reduction of viral, bacterial and protozoan pathogens before flowing into 16 aluminium silicate filters which produce an ionic
by different combinations of health protection measures that achieve interchange to increase the treatment level substantially.
the health-based target of ≤ 10-6 DALYs per person per year). The There are three options to reach level 8 of the logarithmic pathogen
three types of logarithmic reduction in the WHO guidelines combine reduction (not required by WHO-SUWA, but to ensure that level 7 has
treatment and drip irrigation in different percentages corresponding to been reached): activated carbon, ozone filter system, and glass fibre
low-stem, medium-stem and high-stem crops. spherical multivalve system.
Figure 7 shows the levels of reduction reached in different WWTPs
in a measurement process conducted by specialists from the Oriental
Centre for Ecology and Biodiversity (BIOECO), under an agreement 4.2. Agricultural Output
with the Environmental Agency of the Ministry of Science, Technology
and Environment of the Republic of Cuba. Crop yields: crops irrigated with treated wastewater have three
important outputs under WHO Guidelines:

4.2.1. An Increase in Productivity

The measured content of natural fertilisers in correctly treated

wastewater, together with the rational use and management of this kind
of water, has shown increments in productivity at the following levels:

Crops Ton/ha. SUWA Crops/year SUWA

average average

Beans 2.0 3.2 1 2

Tomato 8.9 24.5 5 cuts 10 cuts

Fava 2.8 4.6 1 2

Peas 1.8 3.0 1 2

Quinoa 1.3 6.2 1 3

Figure 7: Samples of 7 steps in the treatment processes of WWTPs for Agricultural Irrigation, SUWA

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4.2.2. An Important Rise in Produce Quality and Prices The most common foodborne problems are (WHO 2000):

As required in WHO Guidelines, the washing of produce and the Good • The spreading of microbiological risks (including bacteria such as
Agricultural Practices inherent to this kind of management increase the Salmonella or Escherichia coli). However, food intoxication may
quality and price of the crops. happen due to the consumption of contaminated food containing
FIAVHI calls this process the ADD A ZERO GAME. It means that the previously produced toxins. It is not necessary to ingest living
farmer is going to have 10 times the money he/she used to get at the microorganisms.
end of the year, but he/she needs to commit 10 times the attention he/ • The presence of chemical contamination in food. It is very
she used to give to the crops. important to fulfil regulations on this matter regarding industrial
and agricultural activities.
• The evaluation of new food technologies. It is necessary to support
4.2.3. Valuable Savings in the Amount of Water Used surveillance systems to cover food safety all along the global food
chain.
Although this concept is due mainly to the drip irrigation system,
it is valid to consider it within the “package” of SUWA proposals. The picture of one regular user of untreated water (Figure 8) in the
There are savings in the amount of water of 50 to 80% compared with Mezquital Valley in Mexico is worth 10,000 words. It is important to
traditional flood irrigation. In FIAVHI projects, a rule of thumb means spread SUWA practices (Figure 9). Although the treated wastewater
irrigating three times the amount of the surface that was under flood has reduced health risks to the greatest possible extent, the same
irrigation. WHO guidelines stipulate no contact at all between farmers/irrigators
and the water.

4.3. Health and Sanitation Controls

Working in the largest area in the world for the continuous irrigation
of untreated wastewater, the introduction of treated wastewater has
demonstrated controls in the following concepts:

4.3.1. Human Health

Food safety encompasses activities to guarantee maximum possible

safety in the process from food production to consumption (“farm
to fork”) (European Food Information Council 2014). Foodborne
diseases include a wide spectrum of illnesses that represent a
growing public health problem worldwide. A food safety programme
requires healthy and nutritional food ingredients, free of biological,
chemical and physical hazards. All regulations should cover these
concepts. Figure 8: Flood irrigation with untreated wastewater in the Mezquital Valley

290 291
 But the presence of huge amounts of untreated wastewater for 2-3
weeks in the “irrigated fields” and their canals generate an intensive
spread of contaminants (liquids, aerials, solids, etc.), which results in a
low-quality environment.

4.4. Maintenance and Management of the WWTP

Two of the basic requirements established as part of the process for the
proper design of WWTPs for agricultural reuse were:

4.4.1. A Simplified and Easy Way to Maintain the WWTP

The sophistication of most of the traditional WWTPs (mainly activated

sludge) requires very qualified attention for maintenance, giving way to
interruptions in operation if the required technicians are not present.
The secondary treatment of FIAVHI WWTPs can be maintained in 30
minutes a day by one person with 2 weeks of training. Tertiary treatment
Figure 9: Baby squash export crop grown with SUWA practices. Tepetitlan, Hgo. requires a combined operational and maintenance cycle performed by
one person with 8 weeks of training.

4.3.2. Animal Health

4.4.2. A Sustainable Management of the WWTP
The large surfaces irrigated with untreated wastewater and the canals
that deliver this water to the fields have produced a kind of subculture For the sustainable management of the WWTP using an appropriate
that includes animals drinking the liquid. and economy-wise operation, two important human components are
This ingestion results in weakness and illness among herds. present in the WWTP for agricultural irrigation:
Unfortunately, most of the animals are grown for meat, transferring their
contamination to human consumers, with very unhealthy consequences. A: users of the sanitation process.
B: users of agricultural irrigation.

4.3.3. Environmental Health Both sides have a specific interest in the correct operation of the
WWTP. In small towns (the programme is aimed at towns with fewer
The toll on environmental health should be very high without the than 2,500 inhabitants), most of the A people are B people and all the
existence of the extraordinary filter system in the soil. As an example, B people are A people. In all successfully developed cases, the WWTP
many families of worms, whose eggs are found in untreated wastewater, Committee is made up of B people. Their interest in obtaining better
find a good location for living in the soil where they were delivered, irrigation water is the basis for good management. The value of SUWA/
without interfering with environmental health (Siebe 1998). WHO treated water, converted into agricultural produce, necessarily

292 293
gives a return value to cover the WWTP’s operational expenses. The entity for competences, with different programmes for capacity
Inter-American Development Bank, one of the financial sponsors of this building, invited FIAVHI to develop the Certification of Competencies
programme, has strongly endorsed this operational option. in the Safe Use of Treated Wastewater in Irrigation.
The main thought of both the UTTT and FIAVHI was to be engaged
in a new way in recognising the capacities and competencies of those
4.5. Capacity Building and Agricultural Irrigation Extension involved in wastewater irrigation, from local farmers to government
officers, passing through technicians, engineers, salesmen, teachers,
Every single human-driven activity in history has required the transfer etc., to establish specific rules within the federal government’s sphere
of skills from person to person, social entity to social entity, etc. of influence.
Nevertheless, agricultural actors and rural communities, who are
responsible for the actual agricultural production, have been reluctant
to change. The agricultural extension system has been one of the most
valuable tools in introducing and sustaining the correct use of treated
wastewater in agriculture.
5. The Certification of Competencies in the Safe Use
of Treated Wastewater in Irrigation (CMC)
4.5.1. Acceptance from Potential Users What is CMC?
The Competencies Management Council is a group of individuals,
Looking at the benefits described above, it should be very easy to companies or organisations representing productive, social or
expect that potential users, i.e. agricultural actors, would accept this governmental sectors, which due to the number of workers and
irrigation option. participation in the labour market as well as nationwide recognition in
In every single WWTP implemented by FIAVHI, there have been the sector, acts as the responsible body for promoting the concept of
small- or medium-sized groups interested in the advantages described competency management in organisations representing each sector.
and accepting of the limitations and duties required for the adequate
success of this kind of irrigation. CMC Objectives:
• Promote the development and implementation of the National
Competencies System in its sector.
4.5.2. Controls and Local Regulations • Define the human capital agenda for competitiveness in its sector.
• Develop and update Competency Standards (CS), Competency
There are no specific regulations in Mexico regarding the use of Assessment Instruments and consequence mechanisms that
wastewater in agriculture, either treated or untreated. In close encourage the certification of workers in the sector.
cooperation with universities, FIAVHI has prepared initial proposals to • Monitor and promote excellence in the implementation of solutions
reach the first level of federal regulations regarding SUWA matters. For in its Evaluation and Certification sector (CONOCER 2008).
good or for bad, all water regulations in Mexico are federal. The states
have some responsibilities derived from delegations made by the federal The Operating Model of the Competencies Management Council
government. Municipalities have some legal capacities dealing with (CMC) is illustrated in Figure 10 below.
distribution and the operation of municipal water and sanitation systems.
In this search of the means and ways to achieve rules and controls,
the Technological University of Tula - Tepeji (UTTT), being a certified

294 295
 • CONAGUA (Management of Irrigation Districts. Branch of Hydro-
Agricultural Infrastructure)
• SAGARPA (Directorate of Capacities Development and Rural
Extensionism)
• UNAM (Department of Soil Science. Institute of Geology)
• Ejido Progreso Atotonilco de Tula

What these organisations are looking for is specialisation in the safe

use of treated wastewater in agriculture.
Currently seven other institutions are offering Certification
Competency Standards (EC).

• Assessment and Certification Entity of the Autonomous University

of Chapingo (Texcoco, State of Mexico)
• Assessment and Certification Entity of the Universidad Autonoma
Agraria Antonio Narro (Saltillo, Coahuila)
• Agricultural Technology Center No. 109 (CBTA 109 Capulalpam
Mendez, Oaxaca)
• Technological University of Tecamachalco (Puebla)
• Technological University Francisco I. Madero (Tepatepec, Hidalgo)
• Assessment and Certification Entity of the Technological University
Figure 10: Operating Model of the CMC of Valle del Mezquital (Ixmiquilpan, Hidalgo)
• Assessment and Certification Entity of the Technological University
Competencies Management Councils can be integrated at the request of Tula-Tepeji (Tula de Allende, Hidalgo)
of associations, chambers and confederations of enterprises, companies,
trade unions, social institutions and organisations at various levels of The estimated population that performs functions on issues related
government interested in joining the National System of Competencies to agricultural land irrigated with treated wastewater is 90,000 persons,
and certifying the capacities of their workers, with the possibility of one which are likely to certify approximately 4,470 people over a period of
or more committees being valid for each sector of economic, social or 10 years. There are 90,000 registered water users in organisations that
government activity. Councils must meet three criteria for integration: have agreements with rights to use the water with CONAGUA.
Competency Standards (abbreviated as ECO in Spanish) under
• Scope development:
• Representation
• High-level dialogue • “Implementation of the regulations, analysis and evaluation of
treatment processes for wastewater agricultural reuse”
Participating institutions are as follows: • EC0628 “Operation of WWTPs for agricultural irrigation”
• UTTT (Technological University of Tula Tepeji) (developed, approved and published)
• FIAVHI (Environmental Infrastructure Trust Fund for the Valleys of • “Control of irrigation systems with treated wastewater”
Hidalgo)

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 With the first Competency Standard (ECO) enforced, the certification • The scheduling of regional workshops on SUWA practices at
process has been initiated (Figure 11), with work simultaneously taking universities, agricultural unions and civil society organisations is an
place on two others, expecting to have the first certificate candidates important side-step in this process.
by the second half of 2016, representing an important step in Mexico • Preparing international workshops on WWTPs for SUWA purposes,
for the improvement of SUWA practices. successfully implemented in the states of Hidalgo and Oaxaca, will
enable the sharing of important experiences and the recording of
correct observations by UN agencies (UNEP, FAO, WHO, UNU,
etc.), and will provide opportunities for progress in the safe use of
treated wastewater in agriculture.

References

CONAGUA. 2001. “Inodoros para uso sanitario-Especificaciones y métodos de prueba”

(in Spanish).

CONAGUA. 2015. “Estadísticas del Agua en México” (in Spanish).

Figure 11: Certification of candidates during field exams at the SUWA WWTP in Acoculco CONOCER. 2008. “Registro Nacional de Estandares de Competencia” (in Spanish).
Mexico.

Cooper, P.F. 2003. “Historical aspects of wastewater treatment”. In Decentralised

Sanitation and Reuse, 11–38. IWA Publishing.
6. Summary, Conclusions, and Lessons Learned Diario Oficial de la Federación. 2015. December 28. http://dof.gob.mx/.

• SUWA has demonstrated its outstanding importance for the current European Food Information Council. 2014. “Farm to Fork.”

and future situation of water, food and the environment on the Sanitation District of Los Angeles County. 2011. “Joint Water Pollution Control Plant.”
planet and for every country.
Siebe, C. 1998. “Nutrient inputs to soils and their uptake by alfalfa through long term
• Inertia to change exists for all SUWA proposals. Water and irrigation with untreated sewage effluent in Mexico.” Soil Use and Management 13.
agricultural subsidies are obstacles to appreciating the value of
World Health Organization (WHO). 2000. “Guidelines for the microbiological quality
treated water. of treated wastewater in agriculture: Recommendations for revising WHO Guidelines.”
• Demonstrative pilot projects and capacity construction activities Bulletin of the World Health Organization 78(9).
are the basic road towards the dissemination of SUWA practices. World Health Organization (WHO). 2006. “WHO Guidelines for the Safe Use of
• The Certification of Capacities and Competences of Irrigation with Wastewater, Excreta and Greywater.” Geneva: World Health Organization.
Treated Water is a necessary instrument to improve the acceptance
of SUWA practices.
• The development of local and regional capacity building and
certification processes through the seven institutions authorised
nationwide are the immediate steps toward the technical and
legal endorsement of persons qualified in the irrigation of treated
wastewater, following WHO guidelines.

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CASE 17
The Reuse of Treated Water for Agricultural
Irrigation in Bolivia (Bolivia)

Luis Grover Marka Saravia 1

Abstract

Bolivia has 52.7 per cent basic sanitation coverage, but in many areas there
are still no wastewater treatment plants and a large number of the existing
ones do not function properly. This results in a potentially major source of
pollution. In addition, there are currently no specific regulations for the reuse
and management of treated wastewater for agricultural irrigation in place.
The Government of Bolivia is planning and establishing a regulatory
framework to solve the problems related to the reuse of wastewater. To
date, the only policies present are the Framework Law of the Mother Earth
and Comprehensive Development for Living Well which defines guidelines
for the treatment of water for extractive purposes, and the Economic and
Social Development Plan (PDES) which outlines plans to refurbish and
improve wastewater treatment plants with a focus on wastewater reuse.
Since 2009 the Joint Commission has promoted a series of activities
aiming at capacity building programmes in Bolivia to define strategies
and approaches to the problem of the reuse of treated wastewater
for irrigation. These strategies will serve as a guide in developing a
programme for the reuse of wastewater for irrigation in Bolivia within the
framework of sustainable water management.
Keywords: reuse, agriculture, regulations, strategies, capacities

1
Luis Grover Marka Saravia 
Director General of Irrigation (Deputy Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation),
Ministry of Environment and Water, Bolivia; e-mail: [email protected]
In: Hiroshan Hettiarachchi and Reza Ardakanian (eds). Safe Use of Wastewater in
Agriculture: Good Practice Examples ©UNU-FLORES 2016
Translated from Spanish to English

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1. Drinking Water and Basic Sanitation Wastewater (treated or otherwise) is used as a renewable source of
water for irrigation. Its use is often indiscriminate with no knowledge
At the national level, 80.8 per cent of the population in private dwellings of the potential health effects that wastewater-irrigated crops might
have access to water and 52.7 per cent have basic in-house sanitation. generate on final consumers.
Between the 2001 and 2012 censuses, access to water increased It is estimated that there are approximately 13,400 industries in
by eight percentage points (72.8 to 80.8 %), while basic sanitation Bolivia, of which 94 per cent are small industries (1 to 10 employees)
coverage increased by 11 percentage points (from 41.4 to 52.7 %) and 80 per cent of these industries are located in the cities of the central
(National Statistics Institute 2013). axis: La Paz, El Alto, Santa Cruz and Cochabamba (Bustamante 2002).
In urban areas, 30 per cent of wastewater captured by sewerage Inhabitants of the lower basins have problems with water quantity and
systems is treated while the rest is discharged into receiving bodies. quality due to the human activities taking place in the upper basin
In Bolivia, 84 out of 98 municipalities with an urban population greater that make use of high volumes of water and the returning of untreated
than 2,000 inhabitants have wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) wastewater to the freshwater ecosystem.
(Ministry of Environment and Water 2013a).
Thirty-one out of the 84 WWTPs do not function properly and the
remaining 53 (more than half) have a removal rate of below 50 per cent.
This means that the health of the population is at risk due to:
3. The Legal Framework for the Reuse of Treated
• Ageing of the WWTPs Water
• Inadequate budget for the proper management of the WWTPs
• Lack of operation and management (O&M) expertise by the plant Bolivia has no specific regulations on the reuse of treated wastewater
operators and management for agricultural irrigation. The environmental
regulatory framework of the Law No. 1333 on water pollution states
that the reuse of raw or treated wastewater by third parties has to
be authorised by federal governments when the interested party
2. Irrigation and Reuse of Wastewater demonstrates that reused water meets the quality established under
the regulations (Plurinational State of Bolivia 1992).
According to projected estimates in 2012, only 32.5 per cent of the Unfortunately, the water pollution regulation does not present
Bolivian population live in rural areas while the remaining 67.5 per cent a clear methodology for the classification of waterbodies. Each
in urban areas. This population requires a large quantity of food, safe federal government ought to suggest a waterbodies classification in
drinking water and basic sanitation. accordance to their suitability of use. To date, the lack of knowledge
In Bolivia, 40 per cent of the national territory is in water shortage and facilities (laboratory analyses for basic parameters and the quality
for irrigation purposes (more than seven dry months) and the effect of control of data) has limited this classification.
climate change is increasing uncertainty over the water availability for In October 2012, the Framework Law of the Mother Earth and
crops irrigation. Comprehensive Development for Living Well was enacted. This
In 2012, only 11 per cent (303,000 ha) of cultivated land was equipped framework aimed at guaranteeing the continuity of the regenerative
with an irrigation system and 70 per cent of irrigated land depended capacity of the components and systems of life of Mother Earth,
on abstraction from rivers (fluctuating flows). In Bolivia, approximately recovering and strengthening local knowledge and ancestral learning
7,000 hectares are irrigated with wastewater; 53 per cent of this area is in a framework of complementarity of rights, obligations and duties
in the city of Cochabamba (Ministry of Environment and Water 2013b). (Plurinational State of Bolivia 2012).

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Among the rules and guidelines established include: • Developing concurrent strategies for environmental management
and quality control of water for urban and rural human consumption,
• Any industrial or extractive activity that involves the use of water through implementation of the Water Quality Control Programme
shall, as appropriate, implement, among other things, proper in Public Water Service Companies (PWSCs).
extractive and processing dynamics that include treatment plants • Increasing sewerage and sanitation service coverage in urban areas
and/or processes that minimise the effects of pollution, as well as with a focus on wastewater reuse (restricted cultivation and/or
the regulation of the discharge of toxic waste into water sources. energy) and the co-responsibility of the population in the use and
• The regulation, protection and planning of the proper, rational and proper maintenance of the system.
sustainable use, access to and exploitation of water resources, are • Increasing sewerage and sanitation coverage in rural areas with
exercised with citizen participation, establishing priorities for the citizen participation and appropriate technology, while considering
use of drinking water for human consumption. the culture of local communities.
• The regulation, monitoring and control of the parameters and • Refurbishing and improving wastewater treatment plants, with a
levels of water quality are observed. focus on reuse (restricted cultivation and/or energy).
• The promotion of the sustainable use and exploitation of water
for food production is done in accordance with the priorities and This decade has been established as the “Decade of Irrigation”
productive potentials of the different areas. (2015-2025) and plans are in place to incorporate the strategy for the
• Adopting, innovating and developing practices and technologies reuse of water for agricultural irrigation to address the problem of
are undertaken for the efficient use, capture, storage, recycling and climate change, in addition to establishing the following:
treatment of water.
• Strengthening of the implementation process of the National
The Economic and Social Development Plan (PDES 2016-2020), Watershed Plan and the focus on the integrated management of
within the framework of Comprehensive Development for Living Well water resources in inter-sectorial coordination processes and between
of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, consists of: the central Government and the Autonomous Territorial Entities
• Promotion of regional consultative platforms for the coordination
• The strategic and prioritisation framework for goals and results of irrigation and integrated watershed management matters, with
• Actions to be undertaken in the third term of government under a focus on adaptation to climate change
the Democratic and Cultural Revolution, developed based on the
Patriotic Agenda 2025 and the Programme of Government 2015-
2020 (Plurinational State of Bolivia 2016).
4. The Joint Commission for the Reuse of Water for
On the issue of sewerage, the PDES establishes that by 2020, rural and
urban areas should respectively attain 60 and 70 per cent of sewerage Irrigation
and sanitation services coverage, the minimum threshold established
by PDES as acceptable levels of sanitation services and sewerage in In Bolivia, the Joint Commission is an entity that provides space for the
Bolivia. Actions towards this goal have to include, among others: exchange of information, coordination and inter-sectorial consultation
on priority issues. These issues have to contribute to the development of
• Expanding drinking water services in urban and rural areas policies which aim at a proper management of WWTPs and sustainable
through citizen participation, appropriate technology and the co- reuse of wastewater for agricultural purposes. The Joint Commission
responsibility of the community in its use and maintenance. was established in 2009.

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 Members of this Commission include the Vice-Ministry of Water • It is necessary to overcome barriers that would jeopardise the
Resources and Irrigation; the Vice-Ministry of Drinking Water and Basic long-term sustainability of the system (general discontent of
Sanitation; Directors of the National Irrigation Service; the National resident population in the vicinity of the wastewater treatment
Service for the Sustainability of Basic Sanitation Services (SENASBA), plants in the country).
as well as representatives of the Gesellschaft für Internationale
Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) programmes and other international
cooperation bodies. Table 1: Summary of the Results Achieved
The Joint Commission, through the technical and financial support
of GIZ, promoted the “Survey and Characterisation of Wastewater
Reuse for Irrigation in Bolivia”, with the objective of establishing draft
Line of action Results achieved
sectoral strategies and guidelines.
Since 2011 the trilateral project “Supporting the Improvement of
the Reuse and Treatment of Wastewater and the Protection of Water Legislation • Draft of technical regulations on the reuse of treated waste-
and regulation water for irrigation
Bodies with a focus on Adaptation to Climate Change” has been • A technical guide for the reuse of wastewater in agriculture
implemented by Bolivia, Germany and Mexico to increase institutional • A guide to the selection and design of wastewater treat-
and technical capacities for the promotion of wastewater reuse and to ment projects
establish adaptation measures in the water sector to mitigate the effect
Capacity • Bolivian technicians were trained in Mexico and are apply-
of climate change. development ing their knowledge in the redesign of WWTPs
In 2014, the collective commitment of the three countries generated • Bolivian technicians received training in monitoring and
a new trilateral project between Bolivia, Germany and Mexico called measuring water quality
• A diploma in design criteria for reuse-oriented WWTPs
the “Reuse of Treated Wastewater for Agricultural Irrigation”, which
jointly hosted by the Mexican Institute of Water Technolo-
remained active until January 2016. This project intended to improve gy (IMTA) and the Higher University of San Andrés (UMSA)
the management of treated wastewater for crops irrigation.
A summary of the results achieved (Ministry of Environment and Water Pilot pro- • Mexican advisors reviewed and made recommendations
2015) during these two phases is presented in Table 1 below. jects for the to two WWTPs design in Cochabamba city
treatment of
With the support of the World Bank, the potential of wastewater wastewater for
reuse for crop irrigation in Bolivia was analysed. The evaluation was reuse
based on the technical and economic analysis of two case studies in
Cochabamba and Tarija. The results of these case studies showed that:
Source: Ministry of Environment and Water 2015
• There is great potential for the safe reuse of wastewater as a
solution to the problem of water scarcity in semi-arid regions of the As a next step, and with the support of the World Bank’s Water
country and as an engine for their economic development. and Sanitation Program, a study entitled “Socio-economic dimensions
• The stabilisation reservoirs demonstrated to be able to meet the associated with the practices of wastewater reuse for productive
quality requirements to permit a safe and unrestricted use of purposes in the highlands” was undertaken to gather information
treated wastewater for crop irrigation. In this manner, wastewater on water reuse in agriculture and shape appropriate policy decision-
reuse will optimise the use of water, maximise the cultivable land making. The study promoted the reuse of wastewater in agriculture
area and enable the simplification of operational and maintenance as (a) a climate change adaptation measure, (b) the sustainable use of
work in the WWTPs. water, and (c) the implementation of pilot projects in this field.

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 Farmers surveyed expressed willingness to collaborate in the capable to manage and operate wastewater treatment plants. Only
management of the water treatment and distribution network, either for those municipalities in which the treatment of wastewater falls into
by making monetary contributions or by devoting hours of work to the their remit, it is possible to make the treatment obligatory and allocate
operation and maintenance of the system. Nevertheless, the financial resources for the operation and maintenance of treatment plants.
contributions that farmers in these areas give to the irrigators’ organisations The quality of water in the outflow must be carefully monitored
remain very low. For this reason, despite the wish to collaborate, it will be and controlled in Bolivia. This requires skilled laboratory technicians
necessary to define alternative and/or complementary mechanisms to directly at the plant station which would at the same time improve
ensure the financial stability of any already planned water reuse schemes. O&M of the WWTPs.
The reduction of health risks through increased sewage treatment
coverage and the improved performance of existing WWTPs are certainly
needed. This calls for large investments in the refurbishment of these 5.2. Generation of Incentives for the Rational Use of Water and
plants. The construction of new WWTPs is also compulsory but this will Reuse of Wastewater
require a long-term implementation plan.
To counteract the risks inherent in the consumption of agricultural To encourage the safe use of wastewater, it is necessary to change
products irrigated with wastewater, complementary short-to-medium the way WWTPs and irrigated crops are given more importance. One
term impact measures are required, e.g. World Health Organization way is to create incentives for good environmental practices. These
(WHO) measures (restriction of crops, localised irrigation, improved incentives could depend on the type of reuse that domestic wastewater
management of harvests, etc.). undergoes. It is important that these incentives are not included in the
The study confirmed the need for major efforts in the field of risk regular municipality budget. The establishment of a separate fund to
awareness and education of “safe water reuse management” for reduce the economic and/or financial burden that may result from the
farmers, traders and consumers. Technical support for producers to design, construction, operation and maintenance of WWTPs is necessary.
support initiatives such as testing crops to be irrigated with reused water This fund could also be made available for industries that show good
or marketing strategies for wastewater irrigated crops seems mandatory environmental practices so that the established rate can be subsidised.
and therefore necessary.

5.3. Identification of Water Supply Alternatives

5. Lessons Learned and Opportunities One of the problems that affect a large part of Bolivia is the increasing
scarcity of water sources for drinking use. Climate change makes
necessary the establishment of precautions on water supply especially
5.1. Municipal Plans with an Emphasis on Treatment and Reuse for the bigger cities where the majority of the population is concentrated.
Bigger problems arise in areas of high population density where
In Bolivia, the need for building treatment plants as an environmental the federal capitals do not have water basins within their jurisdictions.
requirement came about as compliance with the environmental This restricts them from making decisions in the area of conservation of
recommendations that are part of the Law No. 1333. Unfortunately, so water resources and any intent to search for water resources for human
far there is no clear understanding on the use of treated wastewater as consumption has to be agreed upon on a case-by-case basis with those
an important input for the irrigation of gardens or crops. living in the place where the water is to be extracted.
During this process, while the management of finance sustains the In this context, the paradigm of competition for the use of water
construction phase, there is no follow-up on the establishment of units between drinking and irrigation can be changed in some cases by

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making them complementary, with treated wastewater advantageously It clearly appears that wastewater cannot be reused without well-
replacing the water currently used for irrigation. managed sewerage systems and functional treatment plants. The
malfunction of one of the two parts would lead to poor water quality
which would not allow for the safe reuse of water for irrigation.
5.4. Establishment of Controls to Monitor Water Quality It is necessary that, once the sewerage network is built, individual
households have functional connections to it. To achieve that, public
So far, within the scope of Law No. 1333 on the environment, it has funding has to bear the costs of the household connections. Until now,
not been possible to establish any stable monitoring of waterbodies or wastewater treatment plants and their technologies have been difficult
discharges. The regulation of water pollution under Annex A of this law topics to introduce to society since no positive experiences have ever
pertains to four categories of waterbodies depending on their fitness arisen from it. Full functioning pilot plants are therefore needed but
– 80 parameters with maximum permitted values in receiving bodies, above all, these plants have to be able to reduce odours produced by
and 25 parameters with permitted limits for water discharges. the WWTP sanitation process.
With this high number of parameters to test, and in the absence of In addition to the technological efficiency, it is also essential that
specialised personnel, the monitoring of discharges into water bodies WWTPs be built with aesthetically acceptable architectural values for
becomes difficult, if not impossible. the area in which the plant will be built. This will help the inhabitants
As an alternative, it is possible to set up programmes at the of the local area to better accept the infrastructure as part of the urban
universities for training environmental auditors and technicians for this and peri-urban landscape.
purpose. Once trained, the specialised personnel are to return to their
towns and start work in the WWTPs with guaranteed contracts, thus
building capacities that can be developed at the rural level. 5.6. Establishment of Health Goals and Multi-Barrier Water Treatment
Moreover, to carry on effective water quality monitoring, the
number of parameters to test have to be reduced to a manageable In order to achieve a substantial improvement in the water quality in
number, especially if the equipment and supplies available are limited. Bolivia and therefore the health of its citizens, multiple steps have to
Reproducibility of the measurements is another essential requirement. be taken. Both policy makers and technical operators have to work
This would allow for a time series comparison analysis and reliable results. together to:

• Define and establish appropriate technologies and treatment levels

5.5. Intensive Promotion for a Proper Use of Sewerage and for domestic wastewater
Wastewater Reuse Benefits • Define irrigation techniques
• Define crops for which reused water irrigation should be restricted to
The existence of WWTPs is sensible only if there is a sewerage system • Establish tests for human risk exposure for the consumption of
which is capturing wastewater and conveying it into a common location. crops irrigated with reused water
Building WWTPs in rural areas is usually a negative experience as
poor management of sanitary systems and blockages of the sewerage
network by various types of objects lead to intensive maintenance work
which is not immediately available onsite.
Objections for the setting up of WWTPs are strong also from
residents of areas close to the WWTP site. This is especially true when
the plant is close to urban settlements and generates odours.

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References

Bustamante, Rocio. 2002. “Legislación del Agua en Bolivia” (in Spanish).

Instituto Nacional de Estadística (National Statistics Institute). 2013. Press release.

­www.­ine.gob.bo.

Ministry of Environment and Water. 2013a. “Inventario Nacional de Sistemas de Riego

2012” (in Spanish). Cochabamba: PROAGRO programme (GIZ).

Ministry of Environment and Water. 2013b. “Sistematización Sobre Tratamiento y Reuso

de Aguas Residuales” (in Spanish). La Paz: PROAGRO and PERIAGUA programme (GIZ).

Ministry of Environment and Water. 2015. “Informe del Taller de Evaluación de Medio
Término (Report on Mid-term Evaluation Workshop)” (in Spanish).

Plurinational State of Bolivia. 1992. “Ley de Medio Ambiente (Environment Act)” (in
Spanish). Law No. 1333.

Plurinational State of Bolivia. 2012. “Ley Marco de la Madre Tierra y Desarrollo Integral
para Vivir Bien (Framework Law of the Mother Earth and Comprehensive Development
for Living Well)” (in Spanish). Law No. 300.

Plurinational State of Bolivia. 2016. “Plan de Desarrollo Economico y Social 2016 - 2020
(Economic and Social Development Plan 2016 - 2020))” (in Spanish).

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Hiroshan Hettiarachchi
Reza Ardakanian, Editors

SAFE USE OF WASTEWATER

IN AGRICULTURE:
GOOD PRACTICE EXAMPLES

United Nations University Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes

and Resources (UNU-FLORES) promotes the Nexus Approach in managing three
key environmental resources: water, soil, and waste. Wastewater management
provides one of the best natural examples to demonstrate the usefulness of the
Nexus Approach in managing these three resources. This book is an attempt to
share what UNU-FLORES has learned from looking at examples across the globe
on this subject. Seventeen interesting case studies gathered from around the world
on wastewater reuse in agriculture are presented in this book. All cases provide
first-hand information as they have been authored by the experts who implemented
these cases or monitored the progress of them closely for years. The material is
presented in three sections to improve readability. Section I presents five cases
covering Technological Advances. Section II is dedicated for Health & Environmental
Aspects and presents another five unique cases. With seven cases, Section III of the
book provides a useful discussion on Policy & Implementation Issues.

ISBN 978-3-944863-30-6 (Web)

ISBN 978-3-944863-31-3 (Print)

flores.unu.edu