Treatment processes for municipal wastewater reclamation: The challenges of emerging contaminants and direct potable reuse

This paper reviews the treatment processes and schemes used for wastewater reclamation and reuse. Advanced treatment processes are discussed based on the removal efficiency of target contaminants such as nutrients (N and P), total suspended solids (TSS), total dissolved solids (TDS), pathogens, metal, and contaminants of emerging concern (CEC). The CEC removal issue is addressed in more detail due to their not efficient removal in conventional wastewater treatment processes. The residual and by-products of treatment processes is also taken into account as well as operational aspects (i.e. operator skill, complexity and maturity level of the technology, costs). Given that direct potable reuse (DPR) is under consideration in some regions such as California, and Texas due to the local water scarcity, this challenging opportunity is also discussed and final recommendations are reported.