Sewage Management Methods

Introduction

Waste generation is a natural and unavoidable activity in human existence. We all use water for different purposes in our homes, in industries, factories, railway stations, etc. and make it dirty. Although water reserves get replenished periodically, the resource is limited. If its exploitation continues at the present pace, situations like drought and scarcity can occur in the near future.

Table of Contents

• Sewage treatment: Definition
• Onsite Disposal Systems
• Vermi-processing

This can be controlled by reducing the pollution of present resources and recycling the used water. Sewage management is one of the methods of reducing the pollution level in water and recycling water. In this section, we will learn about the methods of sewage treatment.

Sewage treatment: Definition

Sewage treatment is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater such as household waste. The process includes biological treatment of the biodegradable wastes followed by physical and chemical treatment. This is done for the purpose of disinfection and thus producing environmentally treated safe water.

Since the conventional methods do not suffice the purpose, the following methods were also introduced for situations. For example in villages where the system is not organized and places of mass gatherings like bus stops and auditoriums etc.

Onsite Disposal Systems

An on-site sewage disposal system is also called the septic system. It consists of a septic tank for the settlement and treatment of the wastewater and slurries in the same place where the waste is generated. This method uses natural processes to treat and dispose of the sewage from buildings where a central wastewater collection system is not available. A typical on-site water disposal system includes a septic tank and a disposal field which are also termed soil absorption areas or leach fields. The sewage slurry is dumped in the soil where organisms decompose the waste over time. They consume all the available nutrients in the waste leaving behind fully decomposed solid particles that act as humus for the topsoil. These systems are economical, reliable, efficient and hygienic and can last for many years.

Vermi-processing

In this process, the waste sewage slurry collected from sewage disposal systems is treated with earthworms, wigglers and tiger worms. They decompose the faecal matter, kitchen waste (organic) and other household organic waste when shredded into small pieces. This process has been tested in many countries for over 10 years. It is considered a very simple, hygienic, low water consuming process with no odour or fly problem.

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