Sustainable Wastewater Treatment Using Microorganisms: A Low-Cost Biological Approach

There are significant environmental and public health risks associated with the growing discharge of untreated wastewater. This study uses native microbial consortia isolated from raw wastewater to investigate a low-cost and sustainable biological wastewater treatment approach. An aerobic bioreactor system built with low-cost materials was used to enrich and apply microorganisms. Over the course of 14 days, physicochemical and biological parameters such as pH, turbidity, total suspended solids (TSS), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and dissolved oxygen (DO) were monitored in order to assess treatment efficiency. With BOD and COD removal efficiency ranging from 50 to 80 percent, the results showed notable decreases in organic and suspended contaminants. Improved water quality was proven by lower turbidity and higher DO levels. The study concludes that microbial-based wastewater treatment is an environmentally sustainable and economically viable alternative for decentralized and small-scale wastewater management systems.