Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Bonaire’s First Waste Water Treatment Plant Begins Operation
Last week a vacuum truck delivered the first shipment of waste water to Bonaire’s new waste water treatment plant. The treatment plant was built over the last few months on the grounds of LVV, which is the department of agriculture, breeding and fisheries and was constructed by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment. Management will eventually be taken over by the government of Bonaire. The purification of waste water is crucial for the health of the residents of Bonaire and the protection of the coral reef.
The waste water treatment plant is the first of two which will be built on Bonaire. This plant is processing waste water from cesspools and septic tanks, which is delivered by vacuum trucks. In the past, the waste water was deposited in the ditches and soil at LVV and was considered to be a polluting and unhygienic treatment option.
The new plant can process 478,000 liters of waste water per day and at full capacity, will remove 350 kilograms of biological pollution, 74 kilograms of nitrogen and 65 kilograms of phosphate, on a daily basis. The purification process occurs gradually and takes approximately three months when functioning properly.
The plant is currently operating a test run, monitored by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Development and the Curacao engineering and architectural firm M.I.C. M.I.C. has supervised the construction of the plant and trained staff to run the facility.
A second waste water treatment facility is currently being built, also at LVV. This plant will process waste water delivered via a sewage system, and is expected to be operational in 2013.
Water arriving at the plant will be checked for undesirable substances which can affect the purification process, including oils, fats, chemicals and excessive salt water. Residents of Bonaire will be educated about what types of products should not be deposited into the sewage system. Rejected waste water will be discharged into ditches at LVV, with the goal to keep rejected water to minimum. By September, if the purification process is going as planned, there will be little discharge into the ditches. The clean water will be used for cultivation.
The intention of the plant is to remove waste water from the developed coastal area to the treatment plant. The seawater around Bonaire currently contains twice as many nutrients than a few decades ago. Nutrients originate from waste water and seep through the soil and groundwater and eventually into the sea, resulting in excess algae growth and harm to corals. Excessive nutrients in seawater are unhealthy for natural balance in the water and the resulting growth in bacteria can be harmful to humans. (Source: Rijksdienst Caribish Nederland)
