WASTEWATER PROCESSING AND COMPLIANCE RELATIVE TO ULTRA-LOW LEVEL MERCURY PERMITTING

Based on current and projected regulatory plans, nanoscale control of mercury in wastewater operations will shortly (i.e., within ˜ 5years) be a mandated requirement for many POTW and industrial facilities. For example, the Great Lakes Initiative has stipulated an altogether remarkably miniscule mercury permitting level of 1.3 parts-per-trillion for wastewater systems discharging into the Great Lakes watershed, and even then there is no permissible level of mixing zone dilution. As a result, a critical question is now warranted as to what control technologies might be applicable for this extreme application, such that routine compliance with a nanoscale standard might be achieved. This paper will present the results of an exploratory research effort which successfully demonstrated the suitability of a membrane biological reactor (MBR) processing method for reaching this sub-1.3 nanogram/L outcome with a real-world municipal wastewater stream.