A Wastewater Reclamation Using Soil Aquifer Treatment (SAT) Technology to Enhance Groundwater Recharge: Fid-Bau Portal

A Wastewater Reclamation Using Soil Aquifer Treatment (SAT) Technology to Enhance Groundwater Recharge

Chandrakanthamma, L. / Prasanna, K.

Soil aquifer treatment (SAT) is a water purification technique that involves a combination of physical, chemical, and biological processes (American Public Health Association (APHA) in Standard Methods for The Examination of Water and Wastewater. American Public Health Association, Washington, DC, 1998) to improve the quality of wastewater effluent as it seeps through layers of soil. This technology is particularly useful in developing countries like India due to its affordability and ease of operation, as it does not require specialized expertise from wastewater treatment plant operators. SAT (Bahgat et al. in Water Res 33:1949–1955, 1999) is a dependable method that consistently produces high-quality treated wastewater that meets accepted standards. Furthermore, it provides supplementary treatment for primary, secondary, and tertiary effluents from wastewater treatment plants (Arye et al. in Chemosphere 82(2):244–252, 2011). The utilization of wastewater effluent for soil aquifer treatment (SAT) (Bahgat et al. in Water Res 33:1949–1955, 1999) has emerged as a promising solution to address water scarcity in arid and semi-arid regions. However, further investigations are necessary to evaluate the impact of various factors on SAT performance, including organic micro pollutants, pathogens, nutrients, organic matter, suspended solids, rate of hydraulic loading, type of soil, temperature changes, redox conditions, pre-treatment of wastewater, biological activity, and wetting and drying cycles. This research involves analyzing data from laboratory-scale soil columns, horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetlands, and on-site soil analyses. By obtaining a comprehensive understanding of SAT performance, treated municipal wastewater can be considered a feasible option for providing water to communities in such areas. In the present study, the water from STP is filtered through a medium of sand and Biochar. The filtered water is checked for its characteristics, before recharging the ground water.