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Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture
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Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Resources and Sustainable Utilization".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2024) | Viewed by 9017

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Giuseppe Mancuso

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Guest Editor
Department of Agri-Food Science and Technology, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
Interests: sustainable agricultural water management; wastewater treatment and reuse; nature-based solutions; irrigation and drainage systems
Dr. Stevo Lavrnić

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 50, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Interests: wastewater treatment and small scale natural wastewater treatment systems (especially constructed wetlands); wastewater reuse; sustainable water management; climate change and water scarcity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Moses Basitere

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
Interests: sustainable agricultural water management; wastewater treatment and reuse; nature-based solutions
Dr. Mirco Milani

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, Via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy
Interests: sustainable agricultural water management; wastewater treatment and reuse; nature-based solutions, evapotranspiration, irrigation systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Climate change is causing an irreversible modification of the hydrological cycle, leading to unpredictable water availability, exacerbating water scarcity, and contaminating water resources. Water scarcity is having a huge impact on agricultural irrigation, posing a severe risk to food production. The reuse of wastewater after proper treatment may offer a sustainable solution to face water scarcity, preserve quantity and quality of available freshwater, and recover value-added products.

The recent research and technological advances in the sector of wastewater treatment and reuse showed that a high level of quality effluent can be achieved, suitable for reuse in the agriculture sector. However, high treatment costs and environmental footprint might impede the future development of this area.

This Special Issue is intended to cover innovative, sustainable, and efficient technologies which can be used for contaminants removal and/or material recovery from wastewater in order to allow wastewater reuse in agriculture. The influence of wastewater reuse on irrigation networks and soil–water–plant system is also of interest.

To cover this theme, original research papers, review articles, and short communications on the following topics are invited:

  • Innovative and low-cost wastewater treatment techniques;
  • Real-time and precise wastewater quality monitoring tools;
  • Irrigation methods and strategies for wastewater reuse in agriculture;
  • Effects of wastewater reuse on irrigation systems, soil quality, and crop growth;
  • Fate and influence of conventional or emerging wastewater contaminants on agricultural irrigation;
  • Raw materials recovery from wastewater and their utilization in agricultural production.

Other topics might be considered. The potential authors are invited to contact the guest editors for further information.

Dr. Giuseppe Mancuso
Dr. Stevo Lavrnić
Dr. Moses Basitere
Dr. Mirco Milani
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • wastewater treatment
  • wastewater reuse
  • agricultural irrigation
  • sustanaible technologies
  • environmental remediation
  • nutrient recovery
  • emerging contaminants
  • climate change
  • water scarcity

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1309 KiB  
Article
Public Acceptance of Treated Wastewater Reuse in the Agricultural Sector in Saudi Arabia
by Fahad Alzahrani, Momtaz Elsebaei and Rady Tawfik
Sustainability 2023, 15(21), 15434; https://doi.org/10.3390/su152115434 - 30 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1280
Abstract
This paper examines public acceptance of reusing tertiary treated wastewater for agricultural purposes in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected through an online self-administered questionnaire from adults in the Al-Ahsa Governorate. A total of 344 eligible participants completed the survey. The results show that [...] Read more.
This paper examines public acceptance of reusing tertiary treated wastewater for agricultural purposes in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected through an online self-administered questionnaire from adults in the Al-Ahsa Governorate. A total of 344 eligible participants completed the survey. The results show that 77% of the participants supported the reuse of treated wastewater in agriculture. Most participants supported reusing treated wastewater because they trusted the authorities responsible for wastewater treatment and because it will augment water resources in Al-Ahsa. Participants who did not support reusing treated wastewater attributed their lack of support to health risks associated with reusing treated wastewater and for psychological reasons. Additional analysis for eight different agricultural applications showed that most participants supported the reuse of treated wastewater in applications with no direct connection to them (e.g., irrigation of public parks, green spaces, and woody trees and irrigation of animal feed crops). However, less than half of the participants supported the reuse of treated wastewater for other applications, especially for the irrigation of leafy green, raw, and cooked vegetables. Therefore, raising public awareness about the safety of reusing tertiary treated wastewater in agriculture should be a priority for authorities responsible for water management in Saudi Arabia. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture)
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17 pages, 4096 KiB  
Article
Anaerobic Fluidized-Bed Membrane Bioreactor for Treatment of Liquid Fraction of Sludge Digestate: Performance and Agricultural Reuse Analysis
by Lu Liu, Jun Zhang, Yifan Chen, Ze Guo, Ganzhan Xu, Linlin Yin, Yu Tian and Stevo Lavrnić
Sustainability 2023, 15(9), 7698; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15097698 - 08 May 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1568
Abstract
The treatment of sludge digestion liquid is a big challenge in wastewater treatment. If treated as normal wastewater, large amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus present in the sludge digestion liquid might be wasted when they could be reused in agricultural irrigation and reduce [...] Read more.
The treatment of sludge digestion liquid is a big challenge in wastewater treatment. If treated as normal wastewater, large amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus present in the sludge digestion liquid might be wasted when they could be reused in agricultural irrigation and reduce the consumption of artificial fertilizers. Thus, it is of utmost importance to deliver a simple and feasible strategy to treat sludge digestion liquid for agricultural reuse. In this study, a novel type of anaerobic fluidized bed membrane bioreactor system (US-AnFMBR) was developed by combining an ultrasonic processing unit and biochar in AnFMBR. The improvement of sludge properties, removal of pollutants performance and membrane fouling mitigation were achieved in this novel system. The optimal dose of BC (biochar) was 2.5 g·L−1, and the optimal ultrasonic treatment conditions were 30 min at 26 W. The main contribution of ultrasound was to improve the activity of sludge microorganisms to adsorb and degrade more organic matter present in sewage. The system achieved the removal efficiencies of COD, NH4+-N and PO43−-P up to 89.41%, 49.29% and 54.83%, respectively, and had a better mitigation effect in terms of membrane fouling. On the one hand, the biochar addition for COD removal performance was mainly manifested in membrane rejection performance. On the other hand, the combination of low-cost biochar and AnFMBR can also provide new ideas for the recycling of agricultural waste for biochar production. However, regarding the removal efficiency of NH4+-N and PO43−-P, the US-AnFMBR system promoted the activity of starved sludge to preferentially absorb NH4+-N compared with PO43−-P by statistical analysis. The US-AnFMBR can reduce the viscosity of sludge and release more small molecular substances, thus better mitigating membrane fouling. Long-term operation performance also revealed the excellent stability of the sludge digestion liquid treatment. The US-AnFMBR system achieves the recovery of nitrogen and phosphorus resources for subsequent agricultural recycling, and avoids the eutrophication of water ecosystems. Reclaimed water meets the nutrient requirements of typical crops during the growing season. To a certain extent, carbon emission reductions in agriculture can be achieved. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture)
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22 pages, 4166 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Use of Citrus Waste as Organic Amendment in Orange Orchards
by Simona Consoli, Cinzia Caggia, Nunziatina Russo, Cinzia Lucia Randazzo, Alberto Continella, Giulia Modica, Santa Olga Cacciola, Luigi Faino, Massimo Reverberi, Andrea Baglieri, Ivana Puglisi, Mirco Milani, Giuseppe Longo Minnolo and Salvatore Barbagallo
Sustainability 2023, 15(3), 2482; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15032482 - 30 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2001
Abstract
The use of citrus waste (peel, CW) as organic fertilizer was investigated on soil microbiota and on soil physico-chemical and hydraulic characteristics. The biotic components on CW and the effect on nutritional status, leaf chlorophyll content, fruit set and production of “Tarocco” orange [...] Read more.
The use of citrus waste (peel, CW) as organic fertilizer was investigated on soil microbiota and on soil physico-chemical and hydraulic characteristics. The biotic components on CW and the effect on nutritional status, leaf chlorophyll content, fruit set and production of “Tarocco” orange trees were also identified. The citrus waste was supplied to an experimental orchard at different doses: 45 kg m−2 (with and without Ca(OH)2 addition) and 90 kg m−2. The study was conducted in three consecutive years (2015–2017) on 20-year old orange trees at the experimental farm of the University of Catania (Italy). The main results of the study confirm that the use of CW as a biofertilizer offers a great opportunity for sustainable sweet orange production. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture)
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13 pages, 1419 KiB  
Article
Poultry Slaughterhouse Wastewater Treatment Using an Integrated Biological and Electrocoagulation Treatment System: Process Optimisation Using Response Surface Methodology
by Philadelphia Vutivi Ngobeni, Larryngeai Gutu, Moses Basitere, Theo Harding and David Ikumi
Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9561; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159561 - 03 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1619
Abstract
The feasibility of a biological (EcoflushTM) and/or electrocoagulation (EC) treatment system in removing chemical oxygen demand (COD) and fats, oils, and grease (FOG) from poultry slaughterhouse wastewater (PSW) were studied. The response surface methodology (RSM) was used to identify the optimum [...] Read more.
The feasibility of a biological (EcoflushTM) and/or electrocoagulation (EC) treatment system in removing chemical oxygen demand (COD) and fats, oils, and grease (FOG) from poultry slaughterhouse wastewater (PSW) were studied. The response surface methodology (RSM) was used to identify the optimum operating condition for EC and its integration with EcoflushTM as a pre-treatment for the removal of lipids. The optimum operating conditions were obtained at a pH of 3.05, a current density of 66.9 A/m2, 74-min of treatment time, and without Ecoflush™. These conditions produced a high-quality clarified effluent after 92.4% COD reduction and 99% FOG reduction. The treatment with EcoflushTM only resulted in 85–99% FOG reduction, 20–50% COD reduction, and odourless effluent. However, the combination of both processes (EcoflushTM and EC) did not yield a significant difference (F test, p > 0.05) when compared to the performance of EC alone. Despite the low removal percentages of nitrogen and phosphorus, the present study proved that EC is an effective method for the removal of COD and FOG, rendering an effluent that meets the permissible discharge standards for the City of Cape Town. The novel Ecoflush™ also proved to be very efficient in the removal of FOG from PSW. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture)
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17 pages, 5240 KiB  
Article
GIS-Based Assessment of the Potential for Treated Wastewater Reuse in Agricultural Irrigation: A Case Study in Northern Italy
by Giuseppe Mancuso, Monica C. M. Parlato, Stevo Lavrnić, Attilio Toscano and Francesca Valenti
Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9364; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159364 - 30 Jul 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1682
Abstract
Agriculture is the major water user worldwide and it is expected to be negatively affected by climate change and water scarcity. The use of non-conventional water resources could be the solution to overcome this issue. In fact, treated wastewater has a constant availability [...] Read more.
Agriculture is the major water user worldwide and it is expected to be negatively affected by climate change and water scarcity. The use of non-conventional water resources could be the solution to overcome this issue. In fact, treated wastewater has a constant availability during the year and it contains nutrients needed for crop growth. The aim of this research was a GIS-based assessment of the potential for treated wastewater agricultural reuse in the Forlì-Cesena province within the Emilia-Romagna region (Italy). The results showed that, for the selected study area, treated wastewater could satisfy up to 316% of yearly and 210% of irrigation season crop water needs at the actually irrigated areas. Furthermore, the availability of this alternative water resource could lead to an increase in irrigated areas. For the proposed scenario, which considered both the actually irrigated areas as well as the irrigable areas, crop water needs could be satisfied by up to 107% on the yearly level and 71% in the case of the irrigation season. Treated wastewater reuse feasibility was also investigated considering the minimum water quality requirements that were recently provided by the new Regulation (EU) 2020/741. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Applications for Wastewater Treatment and Reuse in Agriculture)
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