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The use of marginal-quality waters, not limited to brackish/saline and treated sewage effluent (TSE), is called reclaimed water. Reclaimed water is a sustainable source in the future for use in agriculture, essentially required to offset the food demand of a rapidly growing population. Moreover, the sustainable recovery of reclaimed water is essential for humanity to satisfy extreme sanitation and water-supply demands. To increase access to water supply, alternate water resources’ use, existing water resources’ degradation, and improved water-use efficiency are imperative. There is a high potential to address these factors by using reclaimed water as an alternative source. The reclaimed water treated at a tertiary level has the potential for use in crop production, especially for forage crops, irrigating urban landscapes, recreational and environmental activities, industry, and aquifer recharge to increase strategic water reserves in water-scarce countries. This way, we can save precious freshwater that can be utilized for other purposes. Eminently, freshwater applications for industrial and agronomic sectors account for 20% and 67%, respectively, depleting freshwater resources. The use of reclaimed water in agriculture can significantly reduce pressure on freshwater. However, if the quality of reclaimed water does not comply with international standards, it may cause serious health risks (diseases) and soil pollution (heavy metals).

This research aims at assessing land suitability for large-scale agriculture using multiple spatial datasets which include climate conditions, water potential, soil capabilities, topography and land management. The study case is in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, in the UAE. The aridity of climate in the region requires accounting for non-renewable sources like desalination and treated sewage effluent (TSE) for an accurate and realistic assessment of irrigated agriculture suitability. All datasets were systematically aggregated using an analytical hierarchical process (AHP) in a GIS model. A hierarchal structure is built and pairwise comparisons matrices are used to calculate weights of the criteria. All spatial processes were integrated to model land suitability and different types of crops are considered in the analysis. Results show that jojoba and sorghum show the best capabilities to survive under the current conditions, followed by date palm, fruits and forage. Vegetables and cereals proved to be the least preferable options. Introducing desalinated water and TSE enhanced land suitability for irrigated agriculture. These findings have positive implications for national planning, the decision-making process of land alteration for agricultural use and addressing sustainable land management and food security issues.

Phosphorus (P), an essential element for living cells, is present in different soluble and adsorbed chemical forms found in soil, sediment, and water. Most species are generally immobile and easily adsorbed onto soil particles. However, P is a major concern owing to its serious environmental effects (e.g., eutrophication, scale formation) when found in excess in natural or engineered environments. Commercial chemicals, fertilizers, sewage effluent, animal manure, and agricultural waste are the major sources of P pollution. But there is limited P resources worldwide. Therefore, the fate, effects, and transport of P in association with its removal, treatment, and recycling in natural and engineered systems are important. P removal and recycling technologies utilize different types of physical, biological, and chemical processes. Moreover, P minerals (struvite, vivianite, etc.) can precipitate and form scales in drinking water and wastewater systems. Hence, P minerals (e.g., struvite, vivianite etc.) are problems when left uncontrolled and unmonitored although their recovery is beneficial (e.g., slow release fertilizers, sustainable P sources, soil enhancers). Sources like wastewater, human waste, waste nutrient solution, etc. can be used for P recycling. This review paper extensively summarizes the importance and distribution of P in different environmental compartments, the effects of P in natural and engineered systems, P removal mechanisms through treatment, and recycling technologies specially focusing on various types of phosphate mineral precipitation. In particular, the factors controlling mineral (e.g., struvite and vivianite) precipitation in natural and engineered systems are also discussed.

Purpose Pharmaceuticals are becoming one of the largest environmental concerns when it comes to the water treatment industry. Increased usage of these chemicals poses a serious risk to ecology and human health due to their leakage into surface waters. In the present study, carbide derived carbon (CDC) was used for the first time as a new adsorbent to remove ibuprofen from synthetic water and wastewater effluent. Methods The morphology, chemical composition, surface area and surface charge of the CDC particles were investigated using the transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, BET analysis and zeta potential measurements. The effects of CDC dosage, temperature, initial pH and agitation speed on the adsorption process were examined by using batch adsorption experiments. Moreover, the adsorption kinetics, thermodynamics, and isotherms were investigated. Results Adsorption and kinetic equilibrium data demonstrate that the adsorption of ibuprofen onto the CDC obeys the Langmuir isotherm model and the kinetics follow the pseudo-2nd order mechanism. The thermodynamic results reveal that ibuprofen adsorption is endothermic and spontaneous. The ibuprofen removal by CDC was mainly controlled by the electrostatic forces at high pH of the feed solution and by the dispersive interactions in acidic media. The ibuprofen removal is promoted at high temperature, high agitation speed and low pH. The highest adsorption capacity of ibuprofen onto the CDC was 367 mg/g at pH 3. Furthermore, the CDC efficiently removed ibuprofen from spiked treated sewage effluent. Conclusions The obtained data indicate that the CDC provides a fast and efficient adsorptive removal of ibuprofen both from a model aqueous solution and treated sewage effluent.

This investigation reports the quantitative assessment of endophyte-assisted floating treatment wetlands (FTWs) for the remediation of sewage and industrial wastewater. Typha domingensis was used to vegetate FTWs that were subsequently inoculated with a consortium of pollutant-degrading and plant growth-promoting endophytic bacteria. T. domingensis, being an aquatic species, holds excellent potential to remediate polluted water. Nonetheless, investigation conducted on Madhuana drain carrying industrial and sewage water from Faisalabad City revealed the percentage reduction in chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) to be 87% and 87.5%, respectively, within 96 h on coupling the plant species with a consortium of bacterial endophytes. With the endophytes surviving in plant tissue, maximal reduction was obtained in not only the aforementioned pollution parameters but for other major environmental quality parameters including nutrients (N and P), ions (Na+ and K+), Cl−, and SO42− as well, which showed percentage reductions up to 90%, 39%, 77%, 91.8%, 40%, and 60%, respectively. This significant improvement in polluted wastewater quality treated with the proposed method render it safe to be discharged freely in larger water bodies as per the National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) of Pakistan or to be reused safely for irrigation purposes; thus, FTWs provide a sustainable and affordable approach for in situ remediation of sewage and industrial wastewater.

One way to encourage agricultural self-sufficiency in arid regions is to increase the productivity of conventional freshwater agriculture. Another way is to develop and implement novel strategies and technologies that do not deplete scarce freshwater. Here we describe several options for countries in the Gulf region to increase their agricultural production by taking advantage of a lesser used resource-marginal water. Marginal water can be treated sewage effluent, produced oilfield water, brackish groundwater or seawater. We describe how this resource can be used to grow salt-tolerant forage crops, microalgae and aquaculture crops. Policies needed to implement and/or scale-up such practices are also outlined. 2018 by the authors.

Sewage effluent effects on the biochemical parameters of Astyanax bimaculatus organs were investigateted. Treated sewage was collected in a treatment plant; 43 compounds, among them, pharmaceuticals and hormones, were investigated. Caffeine, ciprofloxacin, clindamycin, ofloxacin, oxytetracycline, paracetamol, sulfadiazine, sulfamethoxazole, sulfathiazole and tylosin waste was detected in the collected material. Fish were divided into four groups: control, TSE (treated sewage effluent), TSE + P (TSE with increased concentration of five pharmaceuticals) and PTSE (TSE + P post-treated with O3/H2O2/UV). Biochemical parameters were evaluated in different organs after 14-day exposure. TBARS levels increased significantly in the brain of animals in the TSE and TSE + P groups in comparison to the control. There was significant reduction in TBARS levels recorded for the liver, muscle and gills of animals in the PTSE group in comparison to those of animals in the other groups. AChE activity reduced in the muscle of animals in the groups showing the highest pharmaceutical concentrations. CAT activity in the liver of animals in groups exposed to pharmaceutical effluent was inhibited. GST activity increased in brain of animals in the TSE + P and PTSE groups, whereas reduced levels of this activity were observed in liver of animals in the TSE group. Increased GST activity was observed in the brain of animals in TSE + P and PTSE groups. Based on integrated biomarker response values, the TSE + P group presented greater changes in the analyzed parameters. Results point out that pharmaceutical waste can cause oxidative stress, as well as affect biochemical and enzymatic parameters in Astyanax sp. Post-treatment can also reduce damages caused to fish, even in case of the likely formation of metabolites. Based on these results, these metabolites can be less toxic than the original compounds; however, they were not able to fully degrade the pharmaceutical waste found in the sewage, which can interfere in fish metabolism.

Pharmaceuticals are widely used and often discharged without metabolism into the aquatic systems. The photocatalytic degradation of pharmaceutical compounds propranolol, mebeverine, and carbamazepine was studied using different titanium dioxide nanostructures suspended in water under UV and UV-visible irradiation. Among three different photocatalysts, the degradation was most effective by using Degussa P25 TiO2, followed by Hombikat UV100 and Aldrich TiO2. The photocatalytic performance was dependent on photocatalyst dosage, with an optimum concentration of 150 mg L−1. The natural aquatic colloids were shown to enhance the extent of photocatalysis, and the effect was correlated with their aromatic carbon content. In addition, the photocatalysis of pharmaceuticals was enhanced by the presence of nitrate, but inhibited by the presence of 2-propanol, indicating the importance of hydroxyl radicals. Under optimum conditions, the pharmaceuticals were rapidly degraded, with a half-life of 1.9 min, 2.1 min, and 3.2 min for propranolol, mebeverine, and carbamazepine, respectively. In treating sewage effluent samples, the photocatalytic rate constants for propranolol (0.28 min−1), mebeverine (0.21 min−1), and carbamazepine (0.15 min−1) were similar to those in water samples, demonstrating the potential of photocatalysis as a clean technology for the effective removal of pharmaceuticals from sewage effluent.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, characterized with limited water resources and high oil/gas revenues, rely heavily on energy-intensive seawater desalination and non-renewable groundwater abstraction. The need to shift solutions to demand-side practices and sustainable supply alternatives has been long advocated; yet this study is the first to “quantify” the impacts of such solutions on the water management system of Qatar – considered a study case of GCC countries. In this research, a scenario-based approach was utilized to predict the impact of water demand control and wastewater reuse (and the resulting synergies) on consumption of desalinated water, extraction of groundwater resources, and development needs of water and wastewater infrastructure. To this effect, country-specific models for Qatar were developed to project annual household water demand, wastewater generation and residential construction growth, up to year 2050. The outcomes showed that tariff reforms and regulated greywater reuse would reduce the annual household demand for desalinated water by up to 27% and 7%, respectively. Also, intensive reuse of Treated Sewage Effluent (TSE) would reduce 40–80% of total groundwater abstraction for irrigation by 2050. Finally, adopting an integrated water strategy, with combined demand and supply management targets, creates synergies that would: (1) limit groundwater abstraction to rates close to the aquifers safe yield; and (2) delay the need for expansion of the water and wastewater infrastructure by more than a decade. Data-driven recommendations were provided accordingly.

Persistent and mobile organic compounds (PMOCs) are highly soluble in water, thereby posing a threat to water resource quality. Currently, there are no methods that can accurately quantify guanidine derivative PMOCs, other than 1,3-diphenylguanidine (DPG) and cyanoguanidine (CG), in aqueous media. In this study, we developed a quantitation method that combines solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography (LC)-tandem mass spectrometry to detect seven guanidine derivatives in aquatic environments and applied it to environmental water samples. Five LC columns were examined, and among them, a hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography column was chosen owing to its suitable instrument detection limit and retention factor. Method precision was assessed using seven replicate analyses of river water. The corresponding analyte recoveries ranged from 73 to 137% (coefficient of variation = 2.1–5.8%). DPG and CG were detected in ultrapure water samples at levels up to 0.69 and 150 ng L −1 , respectively; DPG and CG levels up to 44 and 2600 ng L −1 , respectively, were detected in lake water, river water, sewage effluent, and tap water sampled in Western Japan. This is the first reported detection of DPG in the surface water of Japan, revealing that DPG and CG are ubiquitous compounds in aquatic environments. Moreover, this is the first study to detect 1-( o -tolyl)biguanide and N , N′′′ -1,6-hexanediylbis( N′ -cyanoguanidine) in water. This study provides a foundation for further research on the distribution, fate, and emission source of these pollutants, which is critical to maintain high water quality and to determine regulatory limits for these pollutants. Graphical Abstract