Waste water treatment is the process of removing contaminated substances from water and converting it into effluent that will not harm the environment and maintain the purity of water bodies. Waste water discharged from factories and laboratories is a pressing matter, it essentially impacts the bodies of water like rivers, ponds, lakes and makes them polluted and unfit for drinking and aquatic animals suffer on it’s account too. Treatment may consist of chemical, biological, or physical processes or a combination thereof. Water may be treated to any level of quality desired. Waste water consists of many pollutants like bacteria, chemicals and other toxic substances. There are two wastewater treatment plants namely chemical or physical treatment plants, and biological wastewater treatment plants.
Biological wastewater treatment uses biological substances like bacteria (aerobically or anaerobically), algae, and fungi (aerobically) and breaks down the waste matter into simpler substances. Physical waste treatment plants use chemical reactions as well as physical processes to treat wastewater.
Biological treatment is ideal for waste discharged from households and business offices. Physical treatment is more suitable for the large amount of waste water discharged by manufacturing units, factories, mills etc.