Reuse of wastewaters for non-potable uses needs a higher than normal reliability in treatment plant operation and management, in order to ensure higher safety margins for public health and environmental protection. After a two-years research project on a pilot plant designed for agricoltural reuse, all control parameters used for the plant operation have been examined, in order to obtain useful observations on efficiency of each of the treatment units, for best overall performance. It was concluded that this type of package plant was able to produce a high quality effluent under various conditions, providing a good confidence on the reliability of the system.

Reuse of wastewaters for non-potable uses needs a higher than normal reliability in treatment plant operation and management, in order to ensure higher safety margins for public health and environmental protection. After a two-years research project on a pilot plant designed for agricoltural reuse, all control parameters used for the plant operation have been examined, in order to obtain useful observations on efficiency of each of the treatment units, for best overall performance. It was concluded that this type of package plant was able to produce a high quality effluent under various conditions, providing a good confidence on the reliability of the system.

A two year experiment, to study the feasibility of wastewater reuse for a safe irrigation in the Sicilian context, has been initiated. Eight plots in two fields, totalling 629 m2, were planted with cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.), the irrigation water being supplied by a pilot plant treating 22 m3/day of municipal wastewater. The plant consists of an extended aeration biological system followed by rapid sand filtration and a choice of disinfection systems. Analyses performed on all waters used in the experiment indicate that safe irrigation water, virtually pathogen-free, can be produced if careful operational techniques are adopted. Despite all possible care, however, soil samples taken throughout the growing season revealed cross-contamination problems, even in the plots irrigated with city water. Analyses were also performed on plants and beans collected over 17 successive harvests.