The Hindu : New Delhi News : Making water ‘odour-free’

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Nov 30, 2007
ePaper

New Delhi

New Delhi

Making water ‘odour-free’

Smriti Kak Ramachandran

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Jal Board wants to take the “stench” out of sewage treatment plants. To create wider acceptance for the use of water treated at the STPs, the Board has decided to please the olfactory senses and rid this water of foul smell.

The rationale for making STPs “smell-free”, say Board officials, is to promote the use of treated water for non-potable purposes other than just horticulture. Taking a cue from cities like Singapore where after extensive filtration, reverse osmosis and ultra-violet treatment process, waste water is bottled and sold as “New Water”, the Board wants to encourage the use of treated water in industry and for cleaning purposes.

“Our thrust is on water re-use. But we have noticed that people usually show hesitation when it comes to using water recycled from waste water. Though the water is clean and suitable for non-potable uses, it sometimes has a bad odour, which puts off people. As of now, water from STPs like the one at Okhla is used for maintaining the lawns in Lutyens’ Delhi zone, but we are looking at more non-potable uses,” says Delhi Jal Board Chief Executive Officer Arun Mathur.

The plan to make “smell-free STPs”, Mr. Mathur said, could be carried out as a pilot project. “It is not impossible any more. In South Korea, for instance, they add enzymes and bacteria to the water to make it stink-free.”

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

New Delhi