Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/1187276
WEEKLY EDITION JULY 3, 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 MBR 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 modification 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 of 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 was 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 series 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 combination 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 very 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 trace pharmaceuticals in the treated water supply. PAGE 10 CONTINUED ON PAGE 11