Effect of Treated Waste Water Irrigation on Plant Growth and Soil Properties in Gaza Strip, Palestine

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of treated wastewater (TWW) irrigation on growth of Chinese cabbage and corn and on soil properties in Gaza Strip, Palestine. Chinese cabbage and corn were planted in winter and summer seasons respectively in a sandy soil. The experimental design was a randomized complete block using 2 treatments with 4 replicates. Soil samples were collected from 0.0 -120 cm depths from all plots and analyzed for pH, electric conductivity (EC) and nutrient contents. The plants were irrigated with either TWW or fresh water (FW) fortified with NPK, while control used drip irrigation system. The biomass (total fresh weight of the plants) was used as an indicator of the plant yields. Concentration of heavy metals on plant leaves was determined by Inductive Coupled Plasma Analyzer (ICP) and was taken as an indicator of plant quality. Biomass of Chinese cabbage and corn grown in plots irrigated with TWW was higher than those grown in plots irrigated with FW. These results indicate the ability of TWW supplying the necessary nutrients for plant growth. Heavy metal content in plant leaves in all treatments (TWW and FW) was nearly similar and below EPA standards, indicating high quality of plants. Soil analysis showed great changes in soil properties due to irrigation with TWW. The interesting outcome of this study is that TWW is an effective source for plant nutrients. It is encouraging to reuse TWW in agricultural system after full treatment.

Cations and Anions in Sewage Sludge from Gaza Waste Water Treatment Plant

“…Accordingly, moderate to low values of soluble N may be found. Our results are also supported by the previous work of [29] who found low nitrate concentration in the treated wastewater.…”

“…Our explanation is supported by the results of [30] who investigated the distribution and variation trend of heavy metals in sludge samples collected from different wastewater treatment plants in China and showed that contents of heavy metals in sludge varied significantly, and the average contents exhibited an order of Cr > Zn > Cu >Pb> As > Hg > Cd. However, the presence of heavy metal in sludge sample may move to the plant during the agricultural process [29]. Furthermore, the presence of heavy metals in sludge may become toxic to soil nitrifying or denitrifying bacteria that benefit the plant growth.…”

The effect of municipal sewage sludge on the quality of soil and crops

“…This revealed that, although Kala compost has a high initial EC value of 31 mS/cm, it leached much better than NPK fertilizer. The statistical results of ANOVA for both EC and pH were not significant (p [ 0.05) among all treatments (see Table 12), this is in line with El-Nahhal et al (2013) who found that both EC and pH values were not significantly different among treatments and were high at the top soil profile of a depth ranging from 0 to 30 cm compared to a depth from 90 to 120 cm. This was because the top profile of soil is more acidic than the deep profile and the highest EC values at the upper layers of soils may have been affected due to the decomposition of organic compounds (Nogueirol et al 2013).…”

Agroecological Substantiation for the Use of Treated Wastewater for Irrigation of Agricultural Land

“…At the same time, the content of heavy metals in the leaves of plants during watering with fresh water and wastewater was almost the same and lower than the EPA standards, which indicates a high quality of plants. The analysis of the soil showed significant changes in soil features due to irrigation with wastewater [El-Nahhal et al, 2013].…”