Reuse of Wastewater in Agriculture

Abstract

Reuse of water is defined as “water which is used twice or more time before it returns back to the natural water cycle”. Treated wastewater is reused for beneficial purposes which include domestic use as toilet flushing, agricultural and landscape irrigation, industrial processes and replenishing/recharging a groundwater basin. water reuse defined as the dependency on the use of groundwater and surface water sources and can reduce the diversion of water from susceptible ecological systems. Moreover, water reuse may decline the nutrient concentration from wastewater flows into waterways, thereby decreasing and controlling pollution. This chapter built in the different sources and possibilities of reuse wastewater, their advantages, disadvantages and possible risks. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the World Health Organization (WHO) health guidelines for the reuse of wastewater and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) water quality guidelines for irrigation are integrated in this chapter. On the basis of these guidelines, recommendations and policy implementations for safe reuse of wastewater in irrigation and various purposes are suggested in this chapter. Further, the issue of wastewater reclamation is given and discussed properly in this chapter, which can be taken into consideration before implementing the reuse of wastewater for agriculture in India and abroad. The prospective reuse of wastewater depends on the hydraulic and biochemical individuality of wastewater, which determines the systems and extent of treatment required. Irrigation usually requires a lower quality of treatment of wastewater. However, properly designed and adequately implemented wastewater reuse system is an environmental protection measure which is superior to discharging treated wastewater into surface waters. It is the authors’ hope that the content of this chapter will facilitate the consideration of reuse as an integral part of water management strategies in development projects. In this context the aim of the authors is to convey the message that the wastewater irrigation is to maximize the benefits to the poor (who depend on the resource) while minimizing the risks. The integrated guidelines will help task managers and development agency staff to prepare wastewater reuse projects. The information and material about wastewater reuse in agriculture shows that an integrated planning approach, considering economic as well as environmental and health issues, related to water reuse, is essentially a guaranty for the success.