Soil Biotechnology an Alternative for Sewage Treatment

Thanks to Jayawanth Bhardwaj for idea on Soil Biotechnology for STPs. You can contact him at jayawanth_b@hotmail.com for more information. The article  contains data collected from various sources and the use of same is at readers discretion.

Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) is mandatory for apartment, villas and gated communities in cities. Sewage treatment plant treats domestic waste water for disposal. Most STPs in communities are Activated Sludge Process (ASP) which is very energy intensive. Moreover, air contains only 20% oxygen, the rest being nitrogen that is passed into water wastefully. Conventional STPs are designed for disposal rather than for reuse. Soil Biotechnology (SBT) based STPs are environment friendly waste processing technology. Since SBT treats water for reuse rather than disposal, SBT is recommended for apartment and gated communities in cities for solving apartment water problem.

Soil Biotechnology (SBT) based STPs

Soil Biotechnology (SBT) is an environment friendly waste processing technology that offers systems for processing of both solid organic wastes and wastewater treatment using bacteria, earthworms and mineral additives in a garden-like setup. This technology was initially developed at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai over two decades of research. Since it reinforces the carbon and nitrogen cycles in nature, the quality of the treated water exceeds state pollution control board standards reducing Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) nitrates to very low levels unlike any other STP method.

Disadvantage of Conventional STPs

In conventional technologies such as ASP, aeration is achieved mechanically, which is very energy intensive. Moreover, air contains only 20% oxygen, the rest being nitrogen that is passed into water wastefully, further adding to process inefficiency. Many communities do not perform an independent quality test of treated water. Thus STPs in most communities not only consume large amount of resources but also pollute surface water bodies and eventually our only source, ground water, when partially treated water is dumped onto open lawns or into storm water drains. They are overloaded, poorly maintained and are prone to frequent breakdowns. Conventional STPs are designed for disposal rather than for reuse.

Soil Biotechnology (SBT) is recommended

Soil Biotechnology is designed for disposal of domestic waste water and treats them for reuse. SBT is recommended for apartment, Villas and gated communities. Unlike a conventional STP or septic tank with numerous motors, stirrer, blower, reverse flush tank, SBT based STPs have at most two motors. Life of filtering media bed is long and requires minimal maintenance, more reliable and it is energy and cost efficient. SBT can be used for arsenic/iron removal, hospital waste processing, and industrial waste water processing and industrial air purification.

Life of the specially constituted filtering media bed is long (tens of years) since with time the natural living agents multiply or shrink to optimal levels based on the actual chemical and biological load in the system. The treated water can be reused for flushing toilets, gardening, washing yards or cars instead of using drinking water for such purposes. Since SBT, processes waste on land rather than inside water it is inherently superior to all the current STP technologies in installation, operation, effectiveness and longevity. The treated water can also used to recharge ground water using rain water harvesting recharge wells. Soil Biotechnology is must for apartments, villas and gated communities for solving water woes and it is ecologically 100% safe.

Courtesy: citizenmatters (Cleaner water from sewage)

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1. G.Venkatachary says:

   June 29, 2010 at 7:09 am

   The article is a usefull one.
   From where can we get the details for installing such an arrangement.
   Venkatachary

   Reply
   • Siddharth says:

     September 28, 2011 at 11:24 am

     Dear Mr. G.Venkatachary
     We are glad to know your interest in soil bio technology.For any further details about the technology you can mail me at siddharth@visionearthcare.com We would be glad to assis you to achieve zero discharge of waste water and save our environment.

     Reply
2. M R Gopakumar says:

   November 27, 2010 at 11:33 am

   I am happy to find use of soil and its bacteria directly for treating Sewage. This is not a new idea. It is a basic knowledge that the bacteria in ASP(Activated Sludge Process) in conventional STP and soil for increasing the biomass are the same.

   It is absolutely wrong to say ASP are designed for disposal and not reuse. All the treated water from our STPs are used for flushing and rest gardening for the past 10 years. There are no issues and there is nothing so great about it. It is designed for that getting that quality. It is wrong to misrepresent ASP to get mileage for “new” SBT. Root zone technology, Anaerobic Contact Media Filter is all similar type of SBT.

   To highlight the other side of SBT, a large open area requirement, blockage of holes in pipe line, tilling the soil continuously and removal of the sludge from the top of the soil is very messy. Requires lots of man power. After certain period of operation, the media and layers will get chocked and quality suffers. Its only advantage is its simplicity and less power. consumption.

   Reply
   • Siddharth says:

     September 28, 2011 at 12:09 pm

     Dear MR Gopakumar
     HAppy to know that you are aware of the amazing technology for IIT Bombay .

     First of all it is completely different from ASP which indeed uses microbes to treat waste water but have the problem of sludge disposal, which on the other hand in SBT is not a problem since it just not only contain microbes but contains a ecology of microorganisms.

     Indeed STP’s based on ASP are giving reusable water quality at some places but at a huge cost to the environment.It requires enormous amount of power as compared to SBT which requires only two pumps to operate and creates huge noise as compared to silent operation of SBT. It smells a lot as compared to an odor free operation of SBT. It’s life is pretty short and requires lot of maintenance where as oldest SBT plant is working from 2001 and has not faced even a single issue.

     To add to your comment there is no blockage of the pipes and the media . It is only one time installation of the media and it regenerate as it is just a replica of the nature.The only man power required to operates the plant is the gardner to switch on and off the pumps rest will work itself.

     Feel free to contact me at siddharth@visionearthcare.com for more details of the technology . We would be glad to clear all your misconception regarding  SBT and help to install it at your locality.

     Reply
     • Shubin says:

       August 23, 2012 at 7:06 am

       Dear Siddharth,

       What is the size of land required for to set up SBT.I need to set up a ETP plant for par boiled rice mill. The effluent water coming out from the plant is with a BOD of 1200 and it is 80 % STARCH only,for this type of water with 30 KL /dAY what could be Land required for SBT Installation. What is the temperature limits for water in to the system ?

       Reply
3. baskar says:

   December 2, 2010 at 12:20 pm

   please send manufacture address of soil bio technology stp in india for further details

   Reply
4. baskar says:

   December 2, 2010 at 12:21 pm

   publish details of manufacture in india for further contact

   Reply
5. mehfooz says:

   December 16, 2010 at 3:01 am

   agree with Mr. Gopakumar. i am into hotel business. the space requirement, the manpower required for cleaning / maintenance is something that has always been an issue with hotel operators. hence the inclination for MBR’s etc . a bit of pumping involved but saves the engg team from laboriuos works and spcae constraints in basements. however i would be interested to know more about this process to understand better.

   Reply
   • Siddharth says:

     September 28, 2011 at 11:55 am

     Dear Mr. Mehfooz
     We are glad to know your interest in soil bio technology.For any further details about the technology you can mail me at siddharth@visionearthcare.com We would be glad to assist you to achieve zero discharge of waste water and save our environment.It can be used to treat all types of waste water and it is completely different from root zone technology.

     Reply
6. Sumit says:

   January 13, 2011 at 3:13 am

   can somebody tell me the installation of SBT technology in hotel industry. where it has been used and how succesful it is for treating sewage. it is same old root zone technology with change of addetives only. i agree with mr. gopal comment on the technology.

   Pls tell how better this technology for the bigger installation i.e more than 1 MLD project and where it has been installed.

   Reply
   • Siddharth says:

     September 28, 2011 at 11:54 am

     Dear Mr. Sumit
     We are glad to know your interest in soil bio technology.For any further details about the technology you can mail me at siddharth@visionearthcare.com We would be glad to assist you to achieve zero discharge of waste water and save our environment.It can be used to treat all types of waste water and it is completely different from root zone technology. We have a largest plant of 3 MLD so i dont think capacity is a constraint for SBT

     Reply
7. Shashi37bs says:

   May 23, 2011 at 2:45 pm

   As per my knowledge this is a pentented technology by Prof. H.S.SHANKAR, Chemical engg deptt. IIT mumbai. This photo  is from the mumbai municipal corporation plant working on SBT. 

   Reply
8. Hks_13 says:

   August 22, 2011 at 8:14 am

   SBT has been installed successfully in various hotels across India, unlike other STPs SBT attracts visitors as it has appearance of garden which adds to the beautification of  land, in addition to that it produce no noise, and smell which helps it to be located in near locality hks_13@rediffmail.com

   Reply
9. Andy says:

   September 27, 2011 at 7:08 am

   Hi.
    In the business discipline, most significant hope furnished by the biotechnology industry organization will be the production of biofuels instead of non-renewable fuels, presenting the place the sting including a badly wanted revenue stream
   biotech

   Reply
10. Rajendra Gogte says:

    January 8, 2012 at 6:56 pm

    Resp Siddarth Sir, We saw yesterday the 3 MLD plant in BMC Lovegroup Pumping Station. I am very much intrested in SBT. Pl send me litretureon the mail address.

    Reply
11. tracy says:

    February 24, 2012 at 1:38 am

    very nice, I have been trying to look for this. Thanks!

    Reply
12. SUDHAKAR PATIL says:

    June 27, 2012 at 5:14 am

    Dear sir,
    can i have construction details.

    Reply
13. sunil kumar shrivastava says:

    August 26, 2012 at 11:18 am

    what is capital and O/M cost to treat the 100 cub.m sullage waste per day based on SBT

    Reply
14. Samir Diwanji says:

    December 17, 2012 at 11:42 am

    How does the SBT perform in wet periods when the water is pouring on to the plantations, and the requirement for plant life is catered by natural down pour. Does the soil around the SBT get affected due to rains? During this period and especially where the rainfall is consistent for at least 15 days, how does the system perform to the designed levels?

    Reply