Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/1138834
W EEKLY EDITION JUNE 19, 2019 Pharmaceuticals in Wastewater: Implications for the Portable Sanitation Industry By Karleen Kos, PSAI Executive Director Although membrane technology seems a promising means of removal of pharmaceutical compounds, the MB R process investigated would not completely halt discharge of micropollutants. Membrane treatment processes should be optimized by modification of the membranes (variation of the materials and reduction of molecular mass cut - off limits) and/or by modificat ion of the treatment process (inoculation of special microorganisms). […] Because of the current lack of information on the behavior of pharmaceuticals in surface and wastewaters, however, further studies are required on the occurrence, fate, and effects o f these substances in the environment. Then, in 2012, the same journal reported on another study aimed at better understanding pharmaceutical residue in the water environment. By this time it wa s well known that pharmaceuticals are able to survive a series of water treatment processes, and concerns were growing because the residues were being detected in water and sediment "ubiquitously," that is, pretty much everywhere. The new study used a seri es of treatment processes including dissolved air flotation (DAF), MBR, and ozone oxidation. The study found: • DAF alone removed between 23% and 83% of pharmaceuticals • MBR alone was able to remove 50 - 99% of specific pharmaceuticals. • DAF and MBR in combinat ion removed between 69.75% and 99.66% of various pharmaceuticals and thus satisfied effluent water quality standards. However, not all pharmaceuticals responded in the same way. While most of the drugs that survived the DAF - MBR process were present in ve ry small concentrations, some drugs such as naproxen (Aleve) tend to be resistant to the process. R e c e n t R e s e ar c h . Research within the past few years has continued to paint a picture that suggests significant negative implications from the presence of t race pharmaceuticals in the treated water supply. P AGE 10 CONTINUED ON PAGE 1 1