Wastewater 101

What is wastewater?

Wastewater refers to any water that has been used for residential, institutional, commercial or industrial purposes. It can contain human waste, chemicals, oils, food scraps, soaps, toilet paper, and more. The "waste" in the water could be in the form of a solid, dissolved solid, or any liquid besides pure water.

Why does wastewater need to be treated?

The purpose of wastewater treatment is to convert wastewater into an effluent that is of high enough quality to either get released back into a receiving waterway with minimal environmental impact, or reused for other purposes. Water is the world's most valuable resource and should be viewed as such and not just a disposable commodity.

 Fun Facts about Wastewater:
 A leaky toilet can waste up to 10 gallons of water per day
 If you leave the water running while hand washing, you use on average two gallons of water
 Wastewater from the Tippecanoe Mall takes approximately eight hours to reach the Lafayette Water Pollution Control Plant
 80 percent of water pollution worldwide comes from wastewater, mainly from developing nations that do not treat wastewater
After the Clean Water Act was implemented in the United States in 1972, pollutant discharges into receiving waterways have been highly regulated and led to cleaner and safer water throughout the country

Keep things running smoothly. Never flush or pour down the drain any of the following:

Think before you flush

The city is committed to implementing processes that guarantee stormwater quality. Here are 5 reasons why we care:

1) Polluted streams and creeks feed into rivers, lakes and oceans, affecting aquatic life. 
2) If water is polluted, water treatment prices go up and the price of drinking water goes up.
3) If you like to fish, swim, or boat you may be affected by advisories and/or warnings in certain areas because of the unhealthy water or too much algae.
4) Tourism and water recreation can also be impacted by polluted water.
5) When we pollute our water, everyone is affected. Make sure you are doing your part to keep local waterways clean, also protecting your quality of life.
Keep it clean