Water Treatment in Developed and Developing Nations An International Perspective

UN studies show that high-income, developed nations treat about 70 percent of their wastewater. However, in low-income developing nations, only 8 percent of wastewater undergoes any kind of treatment. Inadequate water treatment has serious consequences for both human health and the environment. The articles in this compendium provide a representative cross sample of both developing and developed nations' water treatment facilities. Included are the following topics:Reclaimed water for irrigation reuse in developing countriesSludge-handling practices in MicronesiaThe removal of phthalate esters from Chinese water sourcesDisposal of domestic wastewater in NigeriaAmeba-enrichment in a South African water treatment plantBioenergy from wastewater produced by a Brazilian meat-processing plantThe presence of various pharmaceutical contaminants in the River ThamesWastewater recycling in GreeceThe impact on surface water from contaminants released from German water treatment plantsA Canadian constructed wetland's effectiveness for the removal of various contaminants from wastewaterAccessing irrigation from treated wastewater in the United StatesThe spacial distribution of fecal indicator bacteria in the groundwater beneath two American water treatment plantsDetection of contamination from retinoid acid reception agonists in Japanese water treatment plantsThe editor, a respected international expert in the field, has selected investigations that offer essential information for ongoing research at the graduate and professional levels, as well as for environmental engineers and others responsible for choosing the most efficient water treatment technologies.

IntroductionPart I: Developing CountriesComparative Study of Three Two-Stage Hybrid Ecological Wastewater Treatment Systems for Producing High Nutrient, Reclaimed Water for Irrigation Reuse in Developing Countries; Florentina Zurita and John R. WhiteSustainability of Wastewater Treatment and Excess Sludge Handling Practices in the Federated States of Micronesia; Joseph D. RouseOccurrence and Removal Characteristics of Phthalate Esters from Typical Water Sources in Northeast China; Yu Liu, Zhonglin Chen, and Jimin ShenAssessment of Domestic Wastewater Disposal in Some Selected Wards of Maiduguri Metropolis, Borno State, Nigeria; Abba Kagu, Hauwa Lawan Badawi, and Jimme M. AbbaDetection of Free-Living Amoebae Using Amoebal Enrichment in a Wastewater Treatment Plant of Gauteng Province, South Africa; P. Muchesa, O. Mwamba, T. G. Barnard, and C. BartieWater and Wastewater Management and Biomass to Energy Conversion in a Meat Processing Plant in Brazil: A Case Study; Humberto J. José, Regina F. P. M. Moreira, Danielle B. Luiz, Elaine Virmond, Aziza K. Genena, Silvia L. F. Andersen, Rennio F. de Sena, and Horst Fr. SchröderPart II: Developed NationsIntra- and Inter-Pandemic Variations of Antiviral, Antibiotics and Decongestants in Wastewater Treatment Plants and Receiving Rivers; Andrew C. Singer, Josef D. Järhult, Roman Grabic, Ghazanfar A. Khan, Richard H. Lindberg, Ganna Fedorova, Jerker Fick, Michael J. Bowes, Björn Olsen, and Hanna SöderströmWastewater Recycling in Greece: The Case of Thessaloniki; Andreas Ilias, Athanasios Panoras, and Andreas AngelakisDo Contaminants Originating from State-of-the-Art Treated Wastewater Impact the Ecological Quality of Surface Waters?; Daniel Stalter, Axel Magdeburg, Kristin Quednow, Alexandra Botzat, and Jörg OehlmannPerformance of a Constructed Wetland in Grand Marais, Manitoba, Canada: Removal of Nutrients, Pharmaceuticals, and Antibiotic Resistance Genes from Municipal Wastewater; Julie C. Anderson, Jules C. Carlson, Jennifer E. Low, Jonathan K. Challis, Charles S. Wong, Charles W. Knapp, and Mark L. HansonIrrigation with Treated Wastewater: Quantification of Changes in Soil Physical and Chemical Properties; Pradip Adhikari, Manoj K. Shukla, John G. Mexal, and David DanielSpatial Distribution of Fecal Indicator Bacteria in Groundwater beneath Two Large On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems; Charles Humphrey, Michael O’Driscoll, and Jonathan HarrisDetection of Retinoic Acid Receptor Agonistic Activity and Identification of Causative Compounds in Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants in Japan; Kazuko Sawada, Daisuke Inoue, Yuichiro Wada, Kazunari Sei, Tsuyoshi Nakanishi, and Michihiko IkeIndex

Professor Victor Monsalvo is an environmental scientist with a PhD in chemical engineering from the University Autonoma de Madrid, where he later became a professor in the chemical engineering department. As a researcher, he has worked with the following universities: Leeds, Cranfield, Sydney, and Aachen. He is part of an active research team working in areas of environmental technologies, water recycling, and advanced biological systems, including membrane bioreactors. He has led eight research projects with private companies and an R&D national project, coauthored two patents (national and international), and written around fifty journal and referred conference papers. He has given two key notes in international conferences and has been a member of the organizing committee of five national and international conferences, workshops, and summer schools, and is currently involved in fifteen research projects sponsored by various entities. He is currently working as senior researcher in the Chemical Processes Department at Abengoa Research.