Water Treatment Plant

With every person in the United States producing approximately 150 gallons of wastewater a day, the treatment of water becomes very important for our health and the health of our planet.

• 1.

  Wastewater is a technical term for dirty water. We use lots of water everyday for many things. And we are not the only ones using it, think about how water might be used by factories and large institutions like hospitals and schools. Do you think that this water can just be released into the ground or a natural body of water? Think about the repercussions of that scenario.

• 2.

  Research what parts make up a wastewater treatment plant. Determine the size and location of a fictitious town in need of a treatment plan. Identify its wastewater needs. Present these givens in a report. Understand the role of such components of the plan as screens and grit chamber, settling and aeration tank, digester and clarifier, dewater and chlorination chambers.

• 3.

  Illustrate your design for the report using Crayola® Metallic Colored Pencils on graph paper. Determine the placement of the various units as well as the relative size of each component. Make sure the size is capable of handling the amount of wastewater your town produces. Include your diagrams in your report.

Benefits

• Students research how wastewater is treated.
• Students design system for handling water in fictitious town.
• Students write a paper explaining their choices.
• Students illustrate and label their design.

Adaptations

• Visit a wastewater treatment plant to see the system in action.
• Explore how wastewater is handled in other countries. Look into systems in affluent countries like Germany, Sweden, and compare treatment procedures with poor countries. Identify challenges to systems like below sea level neighborhoods, large cities, desert communities. How are these challenges addressed?
• How are other types of waste handled in your community? Is your community part of the solution or part of the problem?