Management of Tundra Wastewater Treatment Wetlands within a Lagoon/Wetland Hybridized Treatment System Using the SubWet 2.0 Wetland Model

Water

Annie Chouinard⁴  Colin N. Yates¹  Gordon C. Balch²  Sven E. Jørgensen³  Brent C. Wootton² 

[1] Waterloo Summit Centre for the Environment, University of Waterloo, Huntsville, ON, P1H 0B6, Canada;Centre for Alternative Wastewater Treatment, Fleming College, Lindsay, ON, K9V 5E6, Canada; E-Mails:;WRL Aps, Langkær Vænge 9, Værløse 3500, Denmark; E-Mail:;Department of Civil Engineering, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada; E-Mails:

关键词: arctic;    wastewater;    SubWet;    management;    treatment wetlands;   

DOI  :  10.3390/w6030439

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

The benefits provided by natural (e.g., non-engineered) tundra wetlands for the treatment of municipal wastewater in the Canadian Arctic are largely under-studied and, therefore, undervalued in regard to the treatment service wetlands provide to small remote Arctic communities. In this paper we present case studies on two natural tundra systems which at the time of study had different management practices, in which one consisted of a facultative lake system continuously discharging into a tundra wetland, while the second system had wastewater discharged directly into a tundra wetland. We also examine the utility of the SubWet 2.0 wetland model and how it can be used to: (i) predict the outcomes of management options; and (ii) to assess treatment capacity within individual tundra wetlands to meet future needs associated with population growth and to help municipalities determine the appropriate actions required to achieve the desired level of treatment, both currently, and in a sustainable long-term manner. From this examination we argue that tundra wetlands can significantly augment common treatment practices which rely on waste stabilization ponds, by recognizing the services that wetlands already provide. We suggest that treatment targets could be more achievable if tundra wetlands are formally recognized as part of a hybridized treatment system that incorporates the combined benefits of both the waste stabilization pond and the tundra wetland. Under this scenario tundra wetlands would be recognized as part of the treatment process and not as the ‘receiving’ environment, which is how most tundra wetlands are currently categorized.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.