EFFLUENT FEES,AN ALTERNATIVE SYSTEM FOR ACHIEVING WATER QUALITY: A CASE STUDY1

This paper reports the findings of a case study of the relative costs of a uniform standards system and an effluent fee system of water quality control. A 30-mile stretch of the Black Warrior River in Alabama is considered. The analysis demonstrates that the dischargers could reduce total pollution abatement costs by 33 percent under the suggested effluent fee system.     

DESK TOP METHODOLOGY FOR MODELING BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND IN STREAMS1

: The modeling of dissolved oxygen in streams is a widely used technique, upon which a great deal of money has been spent. This paper concludes that the standard methods of DO modeling by computer are unnecessarily complex, and that for some purposes, they can be replaced without loss of accuracy by desk top BOD models. Taking as an example, a set of data used in DO modeling, it is shown (a) that the data are grossly inconsistent, (b) that simultaneous gathering of data introduces errors in streams of long travel time, (c) that much more data as to pollutant concentrations should have been obtained, and (d) that 24-hour DO data could have been dispensed with.     

THE MILWAUKEE POLLUTION CASE - IMPLICATIONS FOR WATER RESOURCES PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: The Illinois v. Milwaukee Federal District Court decision is the most far reaching application yet of the federal common law of nuisance to interstate water pollution conflicts. Although a Federal Appelate Court recently rescinded part of the district court decision, Milwaukee must still upgrade its metropolitan sewage system to a level beyond that required by federal and state regulations. The improvements must be completed with or without federal aid. The case points out the apparent inability of the Clean Water Act, the most comprehensive federal legislation affecting the nation's water quality, to deal with certain interstate water quality conflicts. The Milwaukee decision could set a precedent for similar settlements elsewhere which may in turn affect the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's water quality clean up program. A more integrated, ecosystem conscious approach to management of shared water resources (e.g., the Great Lakes) would help reduce the need for court decisions like Illinois v. Milwaukee.     

COST REDUCTIONS DUE TO SEASONAL VARIATION IN MUNICIPAL WASTE WATER TREATMENT LEVELS1

ABSTRACT: Varying treatment levels to meet seasonal variation in assimilative capacity of streams can reduce total costs of treatment. A mathematical model of a Pennsylvania stream based on a theoretically sound approximation of the physical relationships underlying the distribution of DO in a river system was used to determine discharge constraints for an economic optimization model which produced estimates of sewage treatment cost savings. Increasing the number of flow periods during the year enhances cost reducing opportunities even when land application processes are considered. Also, the least cost treatment process for year around operation may not be the least costly under multiple flow period management.     

WATER QUALITY SIMULATION AND PUBLIC LAW 92–500 Case Study: Southwestern Illinois1

ABSTRACT: Section 208 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 has provided the Southwestern Illinois Metropolitan and Regional Planning Commission (SIMAPC) with a unique opportunity for comprehensive planning of the region's water quality. SIMAPC initiated the 208 study by researching available technology for the analysis of point and nonpoint sources of pollution and establishing criteria by which to judge the various technniques. This led to SIMAPC'S choice of continuous simulation of stream and reservoir water quality as the most appropriate analytical tool for their needs. A continuous simulation model was calibrated and verified on three basins in the SIMPAC region. It was then used to produce load source analysis, pollution event frequency analysis, and pollution event duration analysis for ten pollutants under existing stream conditions and then under alternative future conditions. These results enabled the weighting of pollutant sources, analysis of the effectiveness of control measures, and quantitative analysis of the marginal benefit of each alternative.     

BACTERIAL RELATIONSHIPS IN STORMWATERS1

ABSTRACT: Data were developed within a three-year period for indicator bacteria and three species of bacterial pathogens following rural storm event hydrographs. The first flush concept was confirmed in all hydrographs. Bacterial density peaking occurred at or before the hydrograph peaks. FC and FS values were higher in more developed areas than the primary rural test site and their numerical ratios followed similar trends. Chlorine demand of storm waters varied between 8 and 16 mg/l and, the ozone requirement was greater than 32 mg/l in the same waters. Aftergrowth of total coliform bacteria occurred following chlorine and ozone doses of 16 mg/l and 32 mg/l respectively. Fecal coliform, fecal streptococci, Salmonella sp., and Pseudomonas sp. all were reduced to near detectable limits by the disinfectants up to 8 days. Staphylococcus sp. demonstrated a propensity to restablish their populations. Multiple regression analysis of the bacterial groups and species in storm waters suggested the fecal streptococci to have been the most useful group in evaluating bacterial storm water quality, with staphylocci have been closely related insofar as their statistical significance was concerned.     

CONTROL OF LAKE PHOSPHORUS WITH ALUMINUM SULFATE: DOSE DETERMINATION AND APPLICATION TECHNIQUES1

ABSTRACT: Nutrient diversion does not always bring about prompt and sufficient reduction in lake phosphorus concentration due to recycling from nutrient rich sediments. Certain lakes and reservoirs may continue to experience nuisance algal blooms and require additional restorative steps. The phosphorus precipitation/inactivation technique is a procedure to remove phosphorus from the water column and to control its release from sediments in order to achieve P-limiting conditions to algal growth. Aluminum salts have been used in advanced waste water treatment to remove phosphorus and this technology was extended to lake rehabilitation. Guidelines for dose calculation and application are generally lacking, and are provided in this report. The dose determination suggested here allows maximum application of aluminum to bottom sediments and thus emphasizes long term control of phosphorus recycling. Dose can be calculated directly from the alkalinity of the water to be treated. Titration of lake water samples of Varying alkalinity allows the establishment of the relationship between residual dissolved aluminum, alkalinity, and dose which can then be employed for lake scale applications of alum to lakes and reservoirs. Application equipment and procedures are described. These depend on site characteristics and treatment objectives and include lakeside stores, a distribution pipe, and an application barge and manifold. Alum may also be used to meet other restoration objectives including the treatment of problem flows and the reduction of particulate concentrations.     

REGIONAL DETECTION OF CHANGE IN WATER QUALITY VARIABLES1

ABSTRACT: The detection of change in a hydrologic varaible, particularly water quality, is a current problem. A method is presented for testing whether there has been a shift in the mean of a hydrologic variable based on the well established bivariate normal distribution theory. In this technique, the dependent, or target, and the independent, or control, variables are formed as weighted linear combinations of the mean values at a number of locations in a selected target and control area. The weighting factors are determined based on a mathematical programming technique which minimizes the conditional coefficient of variation thereby minimizing the number of observations required to detect a change of a preselected magnitude in the mean of the target area. The result is a situation where a savings in the number of observations required to detect a change is a consequence of adding more stations: the space-time tradeoff. Two applications of the technique are presented, the first using electrical conductivity (EC) data from two sets of river basins and the second using EC data from a set of basins as the target variable and annual discharge as the control. The results indicate that a significant savings in time can be achieved by using this method.     

ESTIMATION OF PRE- AND POST-DEVELOPMENT NONPOINT WATER QUALITY LOADINGS1

ABSTRACT: A simple procedure for estimating pre- and post-development water quality loadings from residential communities is discussed. The procedure deals with: (a) gathering basic water quality loading numbers observed by others at several watersheds with various land uses; (b) obtaining the breakdown of proposed land uses at various phases of the community development; and (c) estimating pre- and post-development water quality loading numbers by taking the weighted average of the basic loading numbers in terms of areal coverages of different land uses at various phases of development. Results of this simplified procedure have been verified indirectly by comparing them with the estimates derived independently through a more fundamental but time-consuming approach. The procedure was used to evaluate the anticipated water quality impact of two future residential communities in South Florida by analyzing four water quality parameters: Suspended Soils (SS), Total Nitrogen (TN), Total Phosphorus (TP), and Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD₅). Although computation of loading numbers with mixed land uses is not an exact science at the present time, the recommended approach appears to be the best available technique to analyze quantitatively the water quality-quantity-land use interactions.     

Assessment of the Water Quality and Ecosystem Health of the Great Barrier Reef (Australia): Conceptual Models

Run-off containing increased concentrations of sediment, nutrients, and pesticides from land-based anthropogenic activities is a significant influence on water quality and the ecologic conditions of nearshore areas of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, Australia. The potential and actual impacts of increased pollutant concentrations range from bioaccumulation of contaminants and decreased photosynthetic capacity to major shifts in community structure and health of mangrove, coral reef, and seagrass ecosystems. A detailed conceptual model underpins and illustrates the links between the main anthropogenic pressures or threats (dry-land cattle grazing and intensive sugar cane cropping) and the production of key contaminants or stressors of Great Barrier Reef water quality. The conceptual model also includes longer-term threats to Great Barrier Reef water quality and ecosystem health, such as global climate change, that will potentially confound direct model interrelationships. The model recognises that system-specific attributes, such as monsoonal wind direction, rainfall intensity, and flood plume residence times, will act as system filters to modify the effects of any water-quality system stressor. The model also summarises key ecosystem responses in ecosystem health that can be monitored through indicators at catchment, riverine, and marine scales. Selected indicators include riverine and marine water quality, inshore coral reef and seagrass status, and biota pollutant burdens. These indicators have been adopted as components of a long-term monitoring program to enable assessment of the effectiveness of change in catchment-management practices in improving Great Barrier Reef (and adjacent catchment) water quality under the Queensland and Australian Governments’ Reef Water Quality Protection Plan.