Introduction to Decentralized Infrastructure for Wastewater Treatment and Water Reclamation
This chapter highlights the development of wastewater infrastructure in the United States and describes how and why decentralized infrastructure has evolved to become a critical component of a twenty-first century infrastructure. Decentralized infrastruct
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1-1. Scope This chapter highlights the development of wastewater infrastructure in the United States and describes how and why decentralized infrastructure has evolved to become a critical component of a 21st century infrastructure. Decentralized infrastructure consists of approaches, technologies, and systems that can be used at buildings and developments with indoor water use and wastewater flows that span from less than 100 to 100,000 gal/day or more. Several examples are provided to illustrate the characteristics and applications of decentralized approaches, technologies and systems that can be used to achieve effective treatment and disposal of wastewaters, provide a source of reclaimed water, and/or to minimize resource consumption and enable resource recovery.
1-2. Key Concepts ■
Water and wastewater infrastructure are inextricably linked through the actions of humans and are crucial for a healthy society with a high standard of living. • Modern solutions for water and wastewater infrastructure need to be effective while being affordable, socially acceptable, and sustainable. • Modern solutions also need to recognize two distinct perspectives concerning wastewater. ○ Wastewater has long been recognized for the risks it poses. Wastewater can pose inherent risks to human health or the environment due to its chemical and microbial constituents. Fundamentally, the challenge is to assess the magnitude of the risks in a
© Springer International Publishing AG 2017 R.L. Siegrist, Decentralized Water Reclamation Engineering, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-40472-1_1
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Introduction to Decentralized Infrastructure for Wastewater Treatment. . .
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given situation and decide on the most appropriate way to manage those risks. Wastewater is increasingly being recognized for the resources it contains. Wastewater represents a resource by virtue of the water, organic matter, nutrients, and energy it contains. The challenge is to select, design and implement approaches, technologies and systems that can recover resources of value in a given situation while also mitigating risks to human health and environmental quality.
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In the United States during the 20th century, major investments were made leading to knowledge, laws, and regulations, modernized fixtures and appliances and plumbing systems, and construction of water and wastewater infrastructure including new and improved conveyance and treatment systems and expansion of service areas and increased accessibility.
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At the close of the 20th century, most of the U.S. population had acceptable and affordable access to safe drinking water and adequate wastewater management. • Approximately 75 % of the nation’s population was served by larger centralized infrastructure with 25 % served by smaller decentralized infrastructure. Basic features of this 20th century infrastructure can be described as follows: ○ Centralized infrastructure—Extensive collection system piping for long-distance transport of wastewaters for remote treatment at energy consuming, mechanical plants with
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