Intergrated Water Management in the Wood Manufacturing Industry

Abstract

Industrial wastewater management is still neglected in a dominating part of the companies in Sweden and it is not considered as a threat to health of man and environment. The Environmental Science  &Engineering Research Group (ESERG) at LNU has under financial support of KK-foundation and large/medium-size companies in Southern Sweden been studied. Even though the problem has been studied for half a century there is knowledge missing and the stormwater is still a growing problem. Every time rain falls, it washes off oils, microorganisms, litter, sediments, fertilizers, and foreign chemicals from streets, parking lots, lawns, dumpster pads, metal roofs as well from landfill, industrial and harbour sites. Industrial facilities with large impervious surfaces for different types of handling of materials are generating stormwater effluents of different qualities which vary during different time periods and same stands for process water generated of a variety of volumes and often of high pollutant concentrations. In some catchment areas, industrial and small business activities can release a significant portion of some pollutants that ends up directly into receiving waters but also at the municipal wastewater treatment plant. Small businesses and enterprises do not pay attention to routine operations and neither have they had the economic resources to implement preventive measures, treatment facilities or to employ expertise on their particular environmental issues. The project “Development of an Integrated Approach for Industrial Wastewater and Stormwater Management in the Wood Industry Sector” has generated new knowledge about industrial waste water treatment that will be presented at the Linnaeus Ecotech 10 international conference.