Zootechnical Farm Wastewaters in Ecuador: A Treatment Proposal and Cost-benefit Analysis

Abstract

This paper presents and discusses the results of a study carried out in Ecuador, where the zootechnical sector represents one of the country’s most important economic activities. It is, however, the source of many environmental problems, including the release of untreated liquid effluents and odorous emissions, and the production and disposal of solid wastes. The main aim of this study was to propose a treatment train for the zootechnical farm wastewater, combining natural systems (i.e., lagoons and subsurface flow beds) with conventional technologies and a cost-benefit analysis. With reference to a specific case study, the different steps of the treatment train were designed and the corresponding construction, operational and maintenance costs evaluated. To better assess the technical and economic feasibility of such a proposal, a cost-benefit analysis was carried out. The social benefit was evaluated by means of the contingent valuation method and a focus on the methodology and collected results was reported. The main findings discussed, in terms of selected treatments, their costs, and the financial and economic analysis of the project, could be useful for administrators, decision-makers and all technicians involved in planning and management of zootechnical farm wastewaters in developing countries, in particular in Latin America.

Surface Water and Groundwater Quality in South Africa and Mozambique—Analysis of the Most Critical Pollutants for Drinking Purposes and Challenges in Water Treatment Selection

“…The collected data are reported in Figures 8 and 9, grouped according to their class. [20,[24][25][26]40,43,45,46,48,49,55,59,60]. It emerges that the most frequently monitored classes were antibiotics (372 values), analgesics and anti-inflammatories (347 values), psychiatric drugs (155 values), and antivirals (154 values).…”

“…It was found that the antivirals nevirapine, efavirenz, and the psychiatric drug carbamazepine, always occurred around 2-13 ng/L in different samples withdrawn from the Dam Hartbeespoort, Gauteng province, over the year It emerges that the most frequently monitored classes were antibiotics (372 values), analgesics and anti-inflammatories (347 values), psychiatric drugs (155 values), and antivirals (154 values). It was found that concentrations of pharmaceuticals may be very high in surface water: this occurs for acetylsalicylic acid (159,900 ng/L, [48]), ibuprofen (84,600 ng/L, [49]), clozapine (78,300 ng/L, [48]), phenacetin (68,300 ng/L, [40]), estriol (46,200 ng/L, [54]), caffeine (33,200 ng/L, [49]) and atenolol (30,000 ng/L, [24]). Most investigations noted that higher concentrations were found in winter than in summer depending on the typical consumption pattern.…”

“…Observed concentrations of micropollutants belonging to classes (A) (Analgesics and anti-inflammatories), (B) (Antiarrhythmic agents), (C) (Antibiotics), (D) (Antidiabetic), (E) (Antihistamines), (F) (Antihypertensives), (G) (Antiseptics), and (H) (Antivirals) in surface water in the reviewed studies referring to South Africa. Data from:[20,[24][25][26]40,43,45,46,48,49,55,59,60].…”

Natural Treatment Systems and Importance of Social Cost Benefit Analysis in Developing Countries: A Critical Review

“…Net present value (NPV) and benefit-cost ratio (BCR) are calculated for the social costbenefit analysis of an environmental project [112,113]. The costs include initial investment and incremental operating and maintenance costs.…”

A review of the occurrence of selected micropollutants and microorganisms in different raw and treated manure – Environmental risk due to antibiotics after application to soil

“…Livestock is one of the main economic activities in many countries worldwide and farm management can differ from country to country, as well as the management of the waste produced by the activities themselves, in particular zootechnical effluent (Verlicchi et al, 2019). The distribution maps of various livestock provided by FAO (Gilbert et al, 2018) show that the most common types of animal are cattle, followed by sheep and goats, swine, poultry and finally horses.…”