ARM Blog

Clodagh Murphy, ARM Group

So…. what do you do?

It’s a bit of a conversation stopper when the reply to that age old question  involves the words sewage and treatment.  Sewage is generally not your average ‘over the dinner table’ topic of conversation… unless, like us, you work in the wastewater industry – in which case I wouldn’t recommend inviting us over for dinner as you may find yourself put off your profiteroles before you can say septic tank!

The average person spends three days of their life sat on the toilet…

Think about how much water you use in a day.  Every time you  wash your hands, have a shower or bath, wash your clothes, use a dishwasher… and did you know you flush the toilet approximately 2,500 times a year?  The average person in the UK uses 200 litres of water per day… to put that into perspective that’s 100 of the large bottles of fizzy drink, every day for each person in the UK.

With World Toilet Day on the 19th November, its as good a time as ever to highlight that most people don’t give it a second thought as to what happens after the toilet has been flushed, or the bath plug pulled.  Where does it go?  How is it treated?

Look after those Bugs

Household wastewater from most houses collect in sewers which end up at a sewage treatment works or, in some cases, are connected to septic tanks.  The treatment of sewage and other wastewaters requires a delicate balancing operation.  An important part of the treatment process utilises microbial activity.  Bacteria (colloquially known in the water industry as bugs) digest the organic pollutants found in wastewaters turning it into carbon dioide, water and nitrogen.  This biological treatment occurs naturally in the ecosystem and natural treatment solutions such as constructed wetlands emulate the natural environment and utilise microbial activity to treat wastewater.  Anything that kills off the bacteria results in greatly diminished treatment.

Its not just household sewage that ends up in sewers.  Companies also discharge industrial wastewater into the sewers.  Strict regulations on wastewater discharges into sewers mean that companies have to be aware of what they discharge into sewers and water bodies.

In October last year, a hazardous waste company discharged cyanide into the sewers in Stoke On Trent which seriously affected the Sewage Treatment Works resulting in pollution of the River Trent by untreated raw sewage.  This was due to the cyanide killing the bacteria in the biological phase of treatment.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that people should be aware that what they put down the drains has an impact on wastewater treatment capabilities.  This is especially prevalent to anyone who uses natural wastewater treatment solutions such as reed beds.  Something as simple as pouring milk down the sink can have a huge impact on the treatment capabilities.

Clodagh