Water, sanitation, and hygiene implications of large-scale recycling of treated municipal wastewater in semi-arid regions

Access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH) is crucial for national development, as it improves human health and fulfills a fundamental need. This study examines the impact of a large-scale groundwater (GW) recharge scheme using secondary treated wastewater (STW) on WaSH characteristics and identifies the major determinants of improved WaSH charecteristics in drought-hit regions of Kolar district, southern India. The study quantifies improved WaSH practices by comparing WaSH characteristics between impacted areas (influenced by STW) and non-impacted areas (not influenced by STW) of Kolar, using household survey data. Pearson's chi-square and student's t-test are used to verify differences between WaSH characteristics. Furthermore, a composite WaSH score is formulated, and a hierarchical stepwise multiple linear regression model is constructed to identify major determinants of improved WaSH scores. The results show that impacted areas have better WaSH characteristics, including daily water supply by gram panchayat, enhanced toilet uses among all family members, bathing patterns, cloth washing practices, toilet cleaning patterns, and water consumption per capita per day. The maximum and minimum WaSH scores of impacted areas were 17.50 and 6.50, respectively, while those of non-impacted areas were 14 and 4.5. This study finds that improved water availability, quality, and security due to daily water supply at the household level are the major determinants of improved WaSH practices. These results can inform policymakers in designing sanitation and hygiene improvement policies that integrate water recycling projects in drought-hit areas.

Investigating the effects of irrigation with indirectly recharged groundwater using recycled water on soil and crops in semi-arid areas

The utilization of direct wastewater for irrigation poses many environmental problems such as soil quality deterioration due to the accumulation of salts, heavy metals, micro-pollutants, and health risks due to undesirable microorganisms. This hampers its agricultural reuse in arid and semi-arid regions. To address these concerns, the present study introduces a recent approach that involves using indirectly recharged groundwater (GW) with secondary treated municipal wastewater (STW) for irrigation through a Soil Aquifer Treatment-based system (SAT). This method aims to mitigate freshwater scarcity in semi-arid regions. The study assessed GW levels, physicochemical properties, and microbial diversity of GW, and soil in both impacted (receiving recycled water) and non-impacted (not receiving recycled water) areas, before recycling (2015-2018) and after recycling (2019-2022) period of the project. The results indicated a significant increase of 68-70% in GW levels of the studied boreholes in the impacted areas. Additionally, the quality of indirectly recharged GW in the impacted areas improved notably in terms of electrical conductivity (EC), hardness, total dissolved solids (TDS), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), along with certain cations and anions (hard water to soft water). No significant difference was observed in soil properties and microbial diversity of the impacted areas, except for EC and SAR, which were reduced by 50% and 39%, respectively, after the project commenced. The study also monitored specific microbial species, including total coliforms, Escherichia coli (as indicator organisms), Shigella, and Klebsiella in some of the harvested crops (beetroot, tomato, and spinach). However, none of the analysed crops exhibited the presence of the studied microorganisms. Overall, the study concludes that indirectly recharged GW using STW is a better sustainable and safe irrigation alternative compared to direct wastewater use or extracted hard GW from deep aquifers.

Assessing groundwater recharge rates, water quality changes, and agricultural impacts of large-scale water recycling

The over-exploitation and insufficient replenishment of groundwater (GW) have resulted in a pressing need to conserve freshwater and reuse of treated wastewater. To address this issue, the Government of Karnataka launched a large-scale recycling (440 million liters/day) scheme to indirectly recharge GW using secondary treated municipal wastewater (STW) in drought-prone areas of Kolar district in southern India. This recycling employs soil aquifer treatment (SAT) technology, which involves filling surface run-off tanks with STW that intentionally infiltrate and recharge aquifers. This study quantifies the impact of STW recycling on GW recharge rates, levels, and quality in the crystalline aquifers of peninsular India. The study area is characterized by hard rock aquifers with fractured gneiss, granites, schists, and highly fractured weathered rocks. The agricultural impacts of the improved GW table are also quantified by comparing areas receiving STW to those not receiving it, and changes before and after STW recycling were measured. The AMBHAS_1D model was used to estimate the recharge rates and showed a tenfold increase in daily recharge rates, resulting in a significant increase in the GW levels. The results indicate that the surface water in the rejuvenated tanks meets the country's stringent water discharge standards for STW. The GW levels of the studied boreholes increased by 58-73 %, and the GW quality improved significantly, turning hard water into soft water. Land use land cover studies confirmed an increase in the number of water bodies, trees, and cultivated land. The availability of GW significantly improved agricultural productivity (11-42 %), milk productivity (33 %), and fish productivity (341 %). The study's outcomes are expected to serve as a role model for the rest of Indian metro cities and demonstrate the potential of reusing STW to achieve a circular economy and a water-resilient system.

Socio-economic impact assessment of large-scale recycling of treated municipal wastewater for indirect groundwater recharge

Reusing treated wastewater is an emerging solution to address freshwater scarcity, and surface water contamination faced worldwide. A unique large-scale wastewater recycling project was implemented to replenish groundwater by filling secondary treated wastewater (STW) into existing irrigation tanks in severely drought-hit areas of the Kolar districts of Southern India. This study quantifies the socio-economic impacts of this large-scale indirect groundwater recharge scheme. The changes in areas receiving STW i.e., impacted areas and those areas which did not receive STW i.e., non-impacted areas was studied. Also, pre and post recycling changes were quantified in the Kolar district. The results show that surface water quality meets India's most stringent treated wastewater discharge standards prescribed by the Hon'ble National Green Tribunal. Due to these recycling efforts, significant improvements in groundwater level and quality were found. It was observed that there was a noticeable difference in agricultural cropping areas, seasons, patterns, and production between impacted and non-impacted areas. Post-recycling, farmers tended to cultivate cash and water-intensive crops over less water-intensive crops. During the post-recycling period, livestock and milk production also increased, and in impacted areas, it was significantly higher. Post-recycling, fish production increased and land prices per hectare increased by 118 % in impacted areas. The farmer's net income under flowers and vegetable farming increased by 202 % and 150 % respectively in impacted areas compared to non-impacted areas. Furthermore, this project contributes to a circular economy transition in the water sector, which has economic, environmental, social, and cultural benefits. A key recommendation from the outcomes of the study is to draft and implement a policy that encourages the reuse of recycled water for groundwater recharge which in turn will improve the agro-economic system and food security.