Review on Natural Methods for Waste Water Treatment

In Ethiopia, the most common method of disposal of waste water is by land spreading. This treatment method has numerous problems, namely high labor requirements and the potential for eutrophication of surface and ground waters. Constructed wetlands are commonly used for treatment of secondary municipal wastewaters and they have been gaining popularity for treatment of agricultural wastewaters in Ethiopia. Intermittent sand filtration may offer an alternative to traditional treatment methods. As well as providing comparable treatment performance, they also have a smaller footprint, due to the substantially higher organic loading rates that may be applied to their surfaces. This paper discusses the performance and design criteria of constructed wetlands for the treatment of domestic and agricultural wastewater, and sand filters for the treatment of domestic wastewater. It also proposes sand filtration as an alternative treatment mechanism for agricultural wastewater and suggests design guidelines.