Abstract
Themes object of this chapter concern wastewater reuse in the Mediterranean region where the problem of water scarcity is continuously aggravating: while the renewable water resources decrease, the demand for potable water is increasing due to population growth and increasing economic activities. One of the most important future options for a sustainable management of water resources in the Mediterranean is the reuse of treated wastewater. Wastewater reuse management is one of the challenges that all Mediterranean countries will have to deal with in the coming decades. Therefore, these countries need water strategies that have to take into account alternative measures to cope with this situation. Wastewater reuse is one of the essential options for Mediterranean countries for the development of their national water policies and strategies.
The innovative approach is actually not a question any more of extracting waste to obtain reusable water, but of extracting reusable water for then using the value elements contained in “waste.” Therefore treated wastewater became a resource. Water extracted initially could be used at various applications, such as the irrigated agricultural, landscape irrigation or the production of drinking water, according to terms of references indicated by the end users.
The extraction of the value elements mainly relates to carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur. The value of these elements lies mainly in the biopolymers and energy production, being used in particular for plastic manufacture, using carbon. The nitrogen or phosphorus could also be used like fertilizers. As for reusable water, the extraction of these various elements will have to follow terms of references fixed by the end users.
The remaining fraction, after extraction of reusable water and the value elements, is not very significant and will be the subject of a specialized treatment (Angelakis in Water Res 33(10):2201–2217, 1999).
This chapter will give a critical overview of new practices in the reuse treated wastewater and sludge in the Mediterranean.
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Abbreviations
- EC Directive:
-
European Commission
- MSW:
-
Municipal solid waste
- TDS:
-
Total dissolved solids
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Chenini, F. (2010). Overview of New Practices in the Reclaimed Water Reuses in the Mediterranean Countries. In: Barceló, D., Petrovic, M. (eds) Waste Water Treatment and Reuse in the Mediterranean Region. The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, vol 14. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/698_2010_61
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/698_2010_61
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