Groundwater makes an important contribution to public water supplies, yet the dynamics of groundwater availability are often simplified in large-scale water resource assessments. This study addresses that challenge on a national scale in England by integrating an empirically based groundwater supply model with a national-scale water resource system simulation model. Through comparison of dynamic and steady groundwater representation and the use of a large-ensemble climate dataset, we illustrate the contribution of groundwater to system supply and performance at a national scale and highlight regional differences in response. The south-east showed particular sensitivity to groundwater flow: In the far-future scenario, the median number of days with restrictions increased by 40% following the introduction of our dynamic groundwater model, compared to simulations based on licensed groundwater yields. Our results emphasise the importance of dynamic representation of groundwater supplies in large-scale water resource assessments.
Amid rising air pollution and urban disconnection from nature, potted plants enhance urban living by improving aesthetics, reducing indoor pollutants, regulating humidity and supporting mental well-being. With growing freshwater demand for non-essential uses like landscape irrigation, sustainable reuse of domestic wastewater offers an effective alternative, especially for non-edible ornamental plants. This study assessed irrigating four ornamental foliage species-Cissus rhombifolia (grape ivy), Plectranthus amboinicus (Cuban oregano), Crassula ovata (jade plant) and Coleus scutellarioides (coleus)-by evaluating morphological, physio-biochemical and soil properties in a 2-year pot experiment. Kitchen wastewater (KWW) enhanced plant performance across multiple indicators compared to groundwater (GW), with treated wastewater (TWW) showing intermediate benefits. Grape ivy, oregano and jade plant adapted best under KWW, whereas coleus performed best with GW. Enhanced physiological responses under KWW and TWW reflected nutrient-driven stimulation without toxicity, supported by improved soil fertility and safe pollution indices, confirming sustainable reuse for irrigation.
Designing waterworks projects requires accurate estimation of both water consumption and unaccounted for water (UFW). In this study, a questionnaire was distributed to 20 large water service providers in the West Bank of Palestine to collect data on water consumption and UFW. Such primary municipal-level data covering 63% of the population is valuable as it has practical relevance to stakeholders in the water sector. The data was statistically analysed to identify relationships between consumption, UFW and independent variables using factor and regression analyses for simplicity. Results demonstrated that total community water consumption was highly dependent on the number of served residential houses. Essentially, population size and service coverage were the key determinants of community water consumption. The surveyed water consumption averaged 72 L per capita per day, whereas the UFW averaged 33%. The UFW was found to be strongly associated with the total number of service meters.
Antibiotics are widely used in human and veterinary medicine and are continuously introduced into aquatic environments through wastewater discharge. This study applied wastewater-based epidemiology to investigate the occurrence, fate and consumption of the four last-resort antibiotics: colistin, polymyxin B, vancomycin and meropenem in northern Malaysia from December 2021 to January 2022. Influent and effluent samples were collected from 18 sewage treatment plants and analysed using solid-phase extraction coupled with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. All targeted antibiotics were detected, predominantly at concentrations below 1 mu g/L, with meropenem and polymyxin B showing the highest detection frequencies. Estimated per capita consumption indicated greater usage of polymyxin B and vancomycin compared to meropenem and colistin. The persistence of certain antibiotics in treated effluents highlights limitations of conventional biological treatment and underscores the need for improved monitoring and regulatory strategies to mitigate environmental and antimicrobial resistance risks.
This study investigated the applicability of environmentally friendly technologies for treating vegetable oil industry wastewater containing high concentrations of recalcitrant compounds. Stainless steel mesh electrodes (SS316) were used to enhance flotation efficiency. Electrocoagulation (EC) with an aluminium anode-SS316 cathode at 1.25 A/cm2 achieved COD and O&G removal efficiencies of up to 98.69% and 98.8%, respectively. Using an iron anode-SS316 cathode at 1.50 A/cm2, COD and O&G removals reached 96.5% and 94.2%. In the electroflotation (EF) process with SS316 electrodes at 1.8 A/cm2, COD and O&G removals were 83% and 88%. Furthermore, kinetic analyses revealed that COD and O&G removal followed a pseudo-second-order model, indicating that the process was mainly governed by surface interactions rather than chemical reactions. These findings demonstrate the efficiency and potential of EC and EF using SS316 electrodes for treating oily wastewater in an environmentally sustainable manner.
Spent automotive lubricating oil contains complex hydrocarbons and heavy metals, posing environmental risks when discarded improperly. Bioremediation with native microorganisms offers a sustainable solution. This study evaluated the biodegradation potential of a bacterial directly isolated from used oil and a bacterial consortium obtained from seawater collected at Ilha do Cardoso (S & atilde;o Paulo, Brazil). The isolate was identified as Bacillus sp., whereas the consortium included three strains of Enterobacter and 13 strains of Acinetobacter. A salt medium with used oil as the sole carbon source was employed to assess growth, biosurfactant production and oil degradation. Optimal growth occurred at 0.2% (v/v) oil after 5 days. Growth kinetics showed higher rates for the consortium (0.529 +/- 0.050 day-1) compared to Bacillus sp. (0.147 +/- 0.010 day-1). Oil removal reached 31.8% for the consortium and 22.2% for Bacillus sp., both above abiotic control. Results highlight microbial consortia as effective agents for oil bioremediation.
This study evaluated two decentralized greywater treatment systems using life cycle assessment: a UASB reactor and an aerobic granular sludge SBR (AGS-SBR). Key impacts, observed in human carcinogenic toxicity, terrestrial toxicity and freshwater toxicity categories, were driven in both systems by energy use and effluent discharge. The UASB outperformed the AGS-SBR in 17 of 18 categories, often by over 50%, due to its simple, non-aerated design, making it a more sustainable option. The sensitivity analysis showed that adding a zeolite post-treatment reduced UASB eutrophication by 12% but increased other impacts. Thus, when considering post-treatment to improve effluent quality, it is crucial to consider environmental impacts. For the AGS-SBR, photovoltaic integration cut most impacts by over 50%. These findings underscore the importance of prioritizing low-energy technologies (UASB) in decentralized greywater treatment. When more efficient and energy-intensive processes like AGS-SBR are necessary, supplementing them with renewables is essential to minimize environmental footprints.
This study aimed to predict type-specific influenza incidence using viral RNA concentrations in wastewater. The RNA concentrations of influenza A and B viruses were measured in weekly wastewater samples collected from three treatment plants in Osaka Prefecture, Japan, between April 2023 and April 2025. Influenza cases in the catchment were apportioned by type using pathogen surveillance data. Models were developed to predict influenza A and B cases per sentinel health surveillance based on viral RNA concentrations in wastewater for the first 69 weeks using hierarchical multiple regression analysis. Their performance was validated over the subsequent 31 weeks. Type-specific influenza cases were predicted with high accuracy (R 2 = 0.859 for influenza A + B cases during the validation period). Influenza incidence estimation through wastewater-based epidemiology is useful for public health measures such as hospital bed allocation because it can provide information approximately 1 week earlier than clinical data publications under same-day laboratory analysis.
The development of effective, sustainable materials for salinity water desalination is essential for addressing worldwide water scarcity. This study presents the development of a portable core-shell evaporator utilizing cellulose pulp bound with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as the adhesive matrix, combined with a molybdenum disulphide/graphene (MoS2/G, 1:1) photothermal layer. PVA enhances the structural integrity, versatility and uniformity of water dispersion within the cellulose core. The evaporator is produced using a freeze-drying technique that preserves the porous structure, improves water transport channels and maintains the integrity of the photothermal coating. The hydrophilic cellulose-PVA core facilitates rapid water delivery and sustained evaporation, whereas the MoS2/G shell ensures efficient light absorption, localized thermal retention and reduced thermal dissipation. Augmenting MoS2/G content (2%-6%) markedly improves performance. Under solar irradiation, the 6% MoS2/G evaporator attains an evaporation rate of 2.35 kg m-2 h-1 with a solar-to-vapour efficiency of 95%.
This study investigates an electrochemical pre-treatment approach for sago waste, a lignocellulosic biomass, with the goal of reducing recalcitrance and enhancing cellulose accessibility for bioenergy production. Comparative experiments were conducted using graphite, stainless steel and iron electrodes to determine the most effective material. Pre-treatment efficiency was evaluated through soluble chemical oxygen demand (sCOD) and structural analyses using SEM, XRD and FTIR. Among the electrodes tested, graphite performed the best, facilitating lignin degradation, enhancing porosity and inducing slight changes in the crystalline structure. In contrast, stainless steel and iron electrodes were less effective under similar conditions. The superior performance of graphite is attributed to its high electrochemical stability and large surface area, which promote efficient lignin oxidation at lower energy input. These findings highlight graphite electrodes as a promising and energy-efficient option for sago waste pre-treatment and valorisation.
Taste and odour compounds (T&O), particularly 2-methylisoborneol (2-MIB) and geosmin, pose persistent challenges in drinking water treatment, as conventional methods often achieve limited removal. This study provides a comparative evaluation of five treatment strategies: activated carbon (AC) adsorption, sulfonic acid-modified activated carbon (SAC) adsorption, peroxone oxidation and integrated applications (AC + peroxone; SAC + peroxone). Source water collected from the Alt & imath;napa Reservoir, T & uuml;rkiye, contained 11.61 ng/L 2-MIB and 11.96 ng/L geosmin. AC achieved removals of 78% (2-MIB) and 68% (geosmin) at 8 mg/L, whereas AC + peroxone achieved comparable efficiencies (76% and 79%) at lower AC doses (1-4 mg/L) combined with 0.1 mg/L peroxone. SAC exhibited adsorption capacity, and SAC + peroxone achieved the highest overall efficiency, particularly for T&O compound reduction. These findings demonstrate that integration of adsorptive and oxidative processes does not necessarily result in synergistic performance and should be evaluated under specific water quality and operational conditions.
This study assesses water footprints (WFs) and physical and economic water productivity (PWP and EWP) in Punjab, India, using farm-level data from 240 farmers combined with the FAO-CROPWAT model. Paddy had the highest WF (1308.2 m3 t-1). Wheat, maize grain and fodder had 9.9%, 3.6% and 92.9% lower WFs, respectively, compared to paddy. WFblue was highest for wheat and paddy due to intensive flood irrigation. In contrast, maize fodder demonstrated the lowest WF and the highest PWP and EWP, followed by maize grain, indicating greater sustainability. WFgrey was significant for wheat and maize grain, necessitating nutrient reforms. Stage-wise analysis suggests that alternate wetting and drying, direct-seeded rice and regulated deficit irrigation can reduce blue water use by 20%-30% without yield penalties. Crop diversification towards maize-based systems, supported by improved irrigation and nutrient management and policy incentives, is crucial for groundwater sustainability in Punjab, aligning with SDGs 6 and 12.
The presence of plastics in the environment, particularly in micro and nano forms, poses significant environmental and health risks. This study investigated Fenton-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), including Fenton, electro-Fenton and Fered-Fenton, for removing two common microplastics: polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE). The experiments were conducted at room temperature and a pH of 3, under the conditions of 0.1 g of microplastics, 100 mL of water, 1.5 mL of H2O2 and 1.5 mL of Fe2+ (concentration: 0.2 M), with a constant voltage of 10 kV and a current of 5 mA, conducting four cycles lasting 5 h. The results indicate that the Fered-Fenton process demonstrated the highest removal rates, achieving 30.6% for PVC and 27.4% for LDPE compared to 22.78% and 19.9% for the Fenton process and 25.4% and 22.4% for the electro-Fenton process. These findings indicate higher removal percentages for PVC and LDPE compared to other studies.
This study employs a subjective well-being approach to assess the negative impact of water intermittency on well-being, as well as the benefits of implementing water storage strategies. Utilizing official, representative data from Mexico, the research empirically explores the well-being consequences of household water insecurity and the mitigating role of coping mechanisms. Regression analysis reveals that rooftop tanks significantly improve life satisfaction compared to households without storage, especially when water is supplied at least every third day. The effectiveness of rooftop tanks is reduced in conditions of more severe household water insecurity. These findings underscore the need for policies that enhance water access and promote efficient storage solutions to mitigate the adverse effects of water scarcity. The implementation of rooftop tanks presents a practical solution to sustain well-being, particularly in areas where structural challenges hinder continuous water supply.
Little is known about the vertical and spatial dynamics of microplastics in relation to hydrology and land use, particularly in African context. This study aimed to assess the abundance, type, colour and vertical distribution of microplastics in sediment from two Ramsar-designated wetlands, the Makuleke and Nylsvley. Sediment core samples were collected from five depth intervals (Depth: 0-20, 20-40, 40-60, 60-80 and 80-100 cm) for microplastic quantification. Microplastics were detected across all depths, with slight variations. Fibres and beads had high abundance in relation to other types. Makuleke exhibited significantly high concentrations of fragments and films than Nylsvley, driven largely by hydrological connectivity and anthropogenic inputs. These findings suggest that wetland protection status alone does not shield against microplastic contamination, which can persist in deep substrate layers for extended periods. Furthermore, the findings highlight the importance of integrated wetland management, enhanced plastic waste policies and ongoing research on the fate of microplastics in freshwater sediment systems.
Reducing nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from wastewater treatment is crucial for the water industry's net zero commitments. This research aimed to evaluate the capabilities of SUMO (Version 22.1.0) and BioWin (Version 6.2) in predicting N2O emissions and identifying mitigation opportunities. Using the Rosedale Wastewater Treatment Plant in Auckland, New Zealand, as a reference, both models were calibrated with field data and N2O measurements. Although both models predicted emissions well, BioWin required modifications. A larger dataset is recommended for better calibration. The SUMO model was used to test an ammonia-based aeration control (ABAC) strategy, which involved a feedback control loop, narrow dissolved oxygen (DO) range with a minimum concentration of 1.5 mg/L and on/off aeration to minimize the aerated volume. This approach reduced emissions by 45% compared to the baseline. Full-scale confirmation of these simulation results is necessary to validate the effectiveness of the proposed mitigation strategies.
This paper investigates the variability of low-rate trickling filter humus tank performance. Data from 41 sites has highlighted large intersite differences in daily variability around the cyclical seasonal average. An approach using turbidity data from 6 years of operation and calculation of deviation from seasonal performance has confirmed a strong relationship linking variability to filter wetting rate. These relationships give new insight into performance, capability and compliance risk within a regulatory framework dominated by compliance based on upper percentile performance. They enable design and operation to meet present and future effluent TSS requirements with reduced risk of compliance failure for TSS and associated parameters. The relationships offer a quantitative approach for design and operation to assess the ability of existing trickling filters to continue to provide sustainable, low carbon wastewater treatment for the future with a greater degree of confidence.
In the current study, Fe3O4@SiO2-ethylenediamine (EN) doped Zn-Al-layered double hydroxides (FSZAL) as a photocatalyst was prepared through the hydrothermal method. Response surface methodology (RSM) was utilized to optimize operational parameters, and the results indicated that individual factors had a greater influence compared to interactions. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) in RSM emphasized that over 95% of the variables could be explained by the model. The presence of interfering substances in the reaction environment reduced the Bisphenol A (BPA) decomposition rate by 10%-25%, and the greatest impact was from the chloride ion. Mineralization experiments suggested that the FSZAL photocatalyst could convert over 92.3% of BPA molecules. Stability tests revealed that over 95% of photocatalytic decomposition could be retained after five consecutive reaction cycles. In the assessment of wastewater toxicity, the growth inhibition rate of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria in the photocatalytic reactor containing FSZAL decreased from 100% to 5%.
Industrial textile effluents pose a persistent environmental challenge, often resisting conventional treatment methods. This study investigates zeolite-derived bio-structure integrated with microbial isolates including Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Aspergillus niger and Penicillium chrysogenum for textile wastewater remediation. These organisms were immobilized onto zeolite matrices to form a synergistic biofilm. The A. niger-based biostructure achieved notable reductions in chemical oxygen demand (COD) by 47%, total suspended solids (TSS) by 56% and total dissolved solids (TDS) by 68%. Bacterial biostructure significantly lowered biological oxygen demand with 85.60 +/- 1.25, 80.26 +/- 1.23 and 82.72 +/- 0.54 mg/L for E. coli, B. subtilis and P. fluorescens, respectively. The COD level decreased to 625 +/- 1.25, 605 +/- 2.70 and 654 +/- 1.60 mg/L while the TSS and TDS were reduced to 712 +/- 1.78, 658 +/- 1.87, 705 +/- 9.34 mg/L and 2424 +/- 3.52, 2354 +/- 2.72, 2470 +/- 1.24 mg/L, respectively. This integrated approach offers a sustainable and cost-effective solution for improving key physico-chemical parameters in industrial wastewater, enhancing pollutant removal and ecological safety.
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are key reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), with municipal sludge containing high bacterial densities and diverse ARGs that may spread through land application. Hydrothermal treatment (HT) is a process that inactivates pathogens and stabilizes biomass, but its performance at moderate temperatures is less understood. We evaluated HT (100 degrees C-250 degrees C; 2-24 h) for degrading bacterial DNA and ARGs in dewatered municipal sludge. DNA was quantified by fluorometry, bacterial presence confirmed by 16S rRNA gene PCR, and ARGs profiled by qPCR targeting 84 clinically and environmentally relevant genes. HT up to 250 degrees C produced modest carbon densification, high solids recovery and low gas yields. DNA persisted at 100 degrees C but was undetectable at >= 150 degrees C for 2 h, with complete ARG removal. These findings demonstrate that moderate HT effectively eliminates DNA and ARGs while preserving nutrient value, supporting its potential as a sustainable, scalable sludge sanitation strategy to mitigate ARG risks.
