Recent Advances in Physico-chemical and Biological Techniques for the Management of Pulp and Paper Mill Waste

Abstract

Pulp and paper industries are one of the major sources of environmental pollution that discharge enormous amount of wastewaters containing recalcitrant pollutants into the environment. Wastewaters have high biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total solids (TS), phenols, lignin and its derivatives. High strength of wastewaters containing dark colour and toxic compounds from pulp paper industries causes serious aquatic and soil pollution. On terrestrial region, pulp and paper mill wastewater at high concentration reduces the soil texture and inhibits seed germination, growth and depletion of vegetation, while in aquatic system, it blocks the photosynthesis and decreases the dissolved oxygen (DO) level which affects both flora and fauna and causes toxicity to aquatic ecosystem. The high pollution load from pulp and paper industrial wastewater gradually increases, and hence, there is a need for adequate treatment to reduce these pollution parameters before final discharge into the environment. Thus, this chapter gives detailed information about sources, characteristics, toxicity and physico-chemical and biological methods for the treatment of pulp and paper mill wastes and wastewaters.