Leveraging green infrastructure for efficient treatment of reclaimed water

Abstract

Global water scarcity necessitates creative, yet practical, solutions to meet ever-growing demand. Green infrastructure is increasingly used in this context to provide water in environmentally friendly and sustainable ways. In this study, we focused on reclaimed wastewater from a joint gray and green infrastructure system employed by the Loxahatchee River District in Florida. The water system consists of a series of treatment stages for which we assessed 12 years of monitoring data. We measured water quality after secondary (gray) treatment, then in onsite lakes, offsite lakes, landscape irrigation (via sprinklers), and ultimately in downstream canals. Our findings show gray infrastructure designed for secondary treatment, integrated with green infrastructure, achieved nutrient concentrations nearly equivalent to advanced wastewater treatment systems. For example, we observed a dramatic decline in mean nitrogen concentration from 19.42 mg L−1 after secondary treatment to 5.26 mg L−1 after spending an average of 30 days in the onsite lakes. Nitrogen concentration continued to decline as reclaimed water moved from onsite lakes to offsite lakes (3.87 mg L−1) and irrigation sprinklers (3.27 mg L−1). Phosphorus concentrations exhibited a similar pattern. These decreasing nutrient concentrations led to relatively low nutrient loading rates and occurred while consuming substantially less energy and producing fewer greenhouse gas emissions than traditional gray infrastructure—at lower cost and higher efficiency. There was no evidence of eutrophication in canals downstream of the residential landscape whose sole source of irrigation water was reclaimed water. This study provides a long-term example of how circularity in water use can be used to work toward sustainable development goals.