• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.32 no.5
• /
• pp.291-304
• /
• 2023

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have become an increasing concern in terms of human health risks as well as aesthetic impairment due to their toxicity. The reduction of water pollutants, especially nutrients from non-point sources in a reservoir watershed, is fundamental for HABs prevention. We investigated the pollutant removal efficiencies of a constructed wetland to evaluate its feasibility as a method for controlling non-point sources located in the Annaecheon stream within the Daecheong Reservoir watershed. The overall removal efficiencies of pollutants were as follows: BOD 14.3%, COD 17.9%, SS 50.0%, T-N 19.0%, and T-P 35.4%. These results indicate that constructed wetlands are effective in controlling pollutants from non-point sources. The seasonal variation in removal efficiency depended on the specific pollutants. The removal efficiencies of BOD, COD, and T-N were stable throughout the year, except during winter, which might have been influenced by lower microorganism activity. In contrast, T-P showed a consistent removal efficiency even during the winter season, suggesting that the wetland can reduce external phosphorus loading to the reservoir. Regarding the effects of pollutant loadings on removal efficiency, the effluent concentrations of all pollutants were significantly decreased compared to those in the influent in case of middle and high loadings. This demonstrates that constructed wetlands can handle high pollutant loads, including the initial runoff during rainfall, to prevent reservoir eutrophication. Despite the various strengths of wetland water purification, there are limitations as passive treatment. Therefore, more case studies should be conducted to suggest optimum operational conditions for constructed wetlands, taking into consideration reservoir-specific characteristics.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
• /
• v.31 no.6
• /
• pp.715-722
• /
• 2015

Four major river basin in Korea has been managed with Total Maximum Daily Load(TMDL) System. Water quality indicators as targeted pollutants for TMDL were BOD and TP. In order to satisfy water quality criteria, government allocation using public treatment facilities and its action plan has been used. However, the role to improve water quality were recently faced to its limitation. It is time to require the role of non-government allocation in private discharge facilities to control good water quality. This study investigated three different scenarios in reduction demands of non-government allocations about industry and private sewages. The three different scenarios were discharge under 1) legal water quality standard, 2) water quality level in 2011 and 3) current water quality level with maximum value in group. The results showed that reduction potential in water discharge for TP indicator was 1,118kg/day, under second scenario with 20% of deduction. This results arrived at 42% of whole reduction potential costs and 0.012mg/L improvement in water quality. In conclusion, to intrigue voluntary participation in non-government allocation, various benefits such as tax reduction, tax exemption, and water quality trading should be provided.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.1-14
• /
• 2022

The total maximum daily load (TMDL) implemented in Korea mainly manages the mainstream considering a single common pollutant and river discharge, and the river system is divided into unit watersheds. Changes in the water quality of managed rivers owing to the water quality management in tributaries and unit watersheds are not considered when implementing the TMDL. In addition, it is difficult to consider the difference in the load of pollutants generated in the tributary depending on the conditions of the water quality change in each unit watershed, even if the target water quality was maintained in the managed water system. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce the total maximum load management at tributaries to manage the pollution load of tributaries with a high degree of pollution. In this study, the HSPF model, a watershed runoff model, was applied to the target areas consisting of 53 sub-watersheds to analyze the effect of water quality changes the in tributaries on the mainstream. Sub-watersheds were selected from the three major areas of the Paldang water system, including the drainage basins of the downstream of the South Han-River, Gyeongan stream, and North Han-River. As a result, BOD ranged from 0.17 mg/L to 4.30 mg/L, and was generally high in tributaries and decreased in the downstream watershed. TP ranged from 0.02 mg/L - 0.22 mg/L, and the watersheds that had a large impact on urbanization and livestock industry were high, and the North Han-River basin was generally low. In addition, a pollution source reduction scenario was selected to analyze the change in water quality by the amount of pollution load discharged at each unit watershed. The reduction rate of BOD and TP according to the scenario changes was simulated higher in the watershed of the downstream of the North Han-River and downstream and midstream of the Gyeongan stream. It was found that the benefits of water quality reduction from each sub-watershed efforts to improve water quality are greatest in the middle and downstream of each main stream, and it is judged that it can be served as basic data for the management of total tributaries.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
• /
• v.54 no.2
• /
• pp.27-35
• /
• 2012

Various Best Management Practices (BMPs) have been suggested to reduce Nonpoint source pollutant loads from agricultural fields. However, very little research regarding water quality improvement with sediment trap has been performed in Korea. Thus, effects of sediment trap were investigated in this study. Three sediment traps were installed at the edge of six plots and flow and water quality of inflow and outflow were monitored and analyzed. It was found that approximately 64.1 % of flow reduction was observed. In addition, pollutant concentration of outflow was reduced by 39.0 % for $BOD_5$. For SS, $COD_{Mn}$, DOC, T-N, T-P, approximately 62.1 %, 43.4 %, 43.5 %, 40.0 %, and 41.2 % reduction were observed, respectively. Over 80 % and 90 % of pollutant loads were reduced from sediment trap #2 and #3 because of less outflow from plots covered with rice straw/straw mat. In case of intensive rainfall events occurred from July 26~29, 2011, over 60 % of pollutant and 88.9 % of sediment reduction were observed from sediment trap #3. As shown in this study, small sediment traps could play important roles in reducing pollutant loads from agricultural fields. If proper management practices, such as rice straw/straw mat, are used to protect surface from rainfall impacts and rill formation, much pollutant reduction could be expected.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
• /
• v.53 no.4
• /
• pp.29-37
• /
• 2011

Effect of rice straw mat and wood shaves on the reduction of runoff and nonpoint source (NPS) pollution loads from field plots were experimentally studied. Three runoff plots of $5{\times}22$ m in size and 3 % in slope were prepared on a loamy sand field. Each plot was equipped with a flume to measure runoff and collect water samples. Experimental treatments of surface cover were bare, wood shaves (1,000 kg/ha) and rice straw mat cover (3,000 kg/ha). Under radish was cultivation. During the growing season of the radish, three rainfall-runoff events were monitored. Effect of wood shaves and straw mat cover on runoff reduction was 4~30 % and 33~75 % respectively compared to control. The effect on NPS pollution reduction was 36.8 and 64.3 % in BOD, 41.1 and 80.8 % in SS, 34.0 and 56.1 % in TP and 28.0 and 56.6 % in TN respectively. It was analyzed that the reduction of runoff and NPS pollution were mainly contributed by the decrease of rainfall energy impact and flow velocity and the increase of infiltration due to the surface cover materials. Rice straw mat showed very stable soil cover while large portion of wood shaves were lost during heavy storm events. It was concluded that straw mat was an efficient cover material to reduce NPS pollution from upland fields.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
• /
• v.36 no.5
• /
• pp.303-310
• /
• 2014

This study investigated the reduction of food waste through the slurry phase decomposition in a source of food waste by microorganisms. The reactor used in the experiment was composed of both woodchip with wood material and sponges with polyurethane material as media of attached microorganisms, and food waste was mixed with a constant cycle consisted of a stirring device. During the experimental period of 100 days, the change in weight over the cumulative total amount of food waste added was reduced by 99%. Approximately, 1% of the residual food waste could be inherently recalcitrant materials (cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, etc.) and thus was thought to be the result of the accumulation. The initial pH in wastewater generated from food waste was low with 3.3 and after 24 hours treatment this pH was increased to 5.8. The concentrations of COD, BOD, SS, salinity, TN and TP were gradually decreased. Food waste decay was proceeded by the seven species microorganisms identified and confirmed in this study, making a slurry phase and thus reducing residual food wastes. In the initial phase, the microbial population was approximately $3.3{\times}10^4$ cell/mL, and after 15 days this population was a constant with $5.1{\times}10^6$ cell/mL which means a certain stabilization for the reduction of food wastes. From these results, it can be considered that organic matter decomposition as well as the weight loss of food wastes by microorganisms is done at the same time.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
• /
• v.28 no.1
• /
• pp.47-52
• /
• 2009

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of yeast(Saccharomyces exiguus SJPAF1, referred to as SA) addition on odor emission and contaminants reduction in piggery sluny. Four different rates of yeast addition were compared: no addition(SA0), 0.7L(SA0.7), 1.0L(SA1.0), and 1.5L(SA1.5) to one tone of piggery slurry. Odor emission tended to decrease with increasing the yeast application with concurrent effects of changes in temperature on outside of reactors. Particularly, reduction in ammonia emission was proportional to the yeast application rate; it reduced from 161.1 ppm in SA0 to 47.1 ppm in SA1.5 after 6 days of treatment Decomposition of piggery shiny by yeast increased to 13.8% more in SA1.5, and total amounts of piggery slurry decreased to 12.5% in SA1.5. Total coliforms were detected below 30MPN $ml^{-1}$ in SA1.5, while $8.3{\times}10^3$ MPN $ml^{-1}$ of Total coliforms were found in SA0. However, the effect of yeast addition in piggery slurry seemed to have no influence on the removal efficiency of contaminants such as BOD, COD, $NO_3^{-}-N$, $NH_4^{+}-N$, $PO_4^{-}P$. Consequently, the yeast(Saccharomyces exiguus SJPAF1) addition of 1.5% in the piggery sluny seems to have potential applicability for improving agent of pig-farm environment.

• KIEAE Journal
• /
• v.14 no.3
• /
• pp.55-63
• /
• 2014

This study selected and analyzed filter media that can be applied in non-point pollution reduction devices aimed at processing the source of pollution on site for road runoff that increases rapidly in rainfall-runoff in order to improve the water quality of urban areas. First, the factors that affect the quality of runoff caused by sources of non-point pollution include physical and social factors such as the usage of land around the area of water collection, type of pavement and movement of cars and people, as well as rainfall characteristics such as frequency, intensity, amount and duration of rainfall. Second, the purification tests of the filter media were processed for pH, BOD, COD and T-P, and the filter media showed to have initial purification effect at that items. However, the filter media showed to be very effective for the processing of SS, T-N, Zn and Cd from the beginning to the end. Third, for filter media, zeolite and vermiculite showed to be effective for processing SS, T-N, Zn and CD constantly, and composite filter media including zeolite showed to have strong processing effects. The authors conclude that this study can be applied to technical areas and policies aimed at reducing non-point pollution in urban areas and can also contribute to allowing eco-friendly management of rainfall as well as improvement of water quality.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
• /
• v.29 no.8
• /
• pp.895-903
• /
• 2007

As for the increasing demanding on the development of direct-ecological landfill monitoring methods, it is needed for critically defining the condition of landfills and their influence on the environment, quantifying the amount of enzymes and bacteria mainly concerned with biochemical reaction in the landfills. This study was thus conducted to understand the fates of contaminants in association with groundwater quality parameters. For the study, groundwater was seasonally sampled from four closed unsanitary landfills(i.e. Cheonan(C), Wonju(W), Nonsan(N), Pyeongtaek(P) sites) in which microbial diversity was simultaneously obtained by 16S rDNA methods. Subsequently, a number of primer sets were prepared for quantifying the specific gene of representative bacteria and the gene of encoding enzymes dominantly found in the landfills. The relationship between water quality parameters and gene quantification were compared based on correlation factors. Correlation between DSR(Sulfate reduction bacteria) gene and BOD(Biochemical Oxygen Demand) was greater than 0.8 while NSR(Nitrification bacteria-Nitrospira sp.) gene and nitrate were related more than 0.9. A stabilization indicator(BOD/COD) and MTOT(Methane Oxidation bacteria), MCR(Methyl coenzyme M reductase), Dde(Dechloromonas denitrificans) genes were correlated over 0.8, but ferric iron and Fli(Ferribacterium limineticm) gene were at the lowest of 0.7. For MTOT, it was at the highest related at 100% over BOD/COD. In addition, anaerobic genes(i.e., nirS-Nitrite reductase, MCR. Dde, DSR) and DO were also related more than 0.8, which showing anaerobic reactions generally dependant upon DO. As demonstrated in the study, molecular biological investigation and water quality parameters are highly co-linked, so that quantitative real-time PCR could be cooperatively used for assessing landfill stabilization in association with the conventional monitoring parameters.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.26 no.4
• /
• pp.380-391
• /
• 1993

The experimental study was made to propose the treatment method of wastewater in the high-density fish culture system. The BOD to COD ratios of effluents were almost same to 0.65 in the eel-farm, but were various in the farm rearing together with tilapia etc. A BOD rate curve of the eel-farm effluent could be described mathematically by the equation, $BODu=14.1(1-10^{-0.222t})+30.9(1-10^{-0.035(t-8)})$. Nitrification in Biological Fluidized Bed(BFB) system to treat the fish-farm wastewater could be reduce ammonium level up to $65{\sim}79\%$ when ammonium loading rates were between 0.014 and 0.075g $NH_4/g$ BVS-day. Nitrification efficiency was decreased by organic matters in the wastewater when ammonium loading was low(0.014 g $NH_4/g$ BVS-day). T-N removal ratios were decreased to increase loading in denitrification process, because of low C/N ratio. Based on much higher biological mass concentrations, BFB system takes many advantages of a practical viewpoint, such as stability of treatment efficiency and reduction of necessary site area for the facility, as compared with conventional treatment systems.