In 2003, Singapore launched a groundbreaking wastewater recycling plan so that they wouldn’t run out of drinking water. Supplementing over 50% of the country’s water was an ambitious goal, but they were up for the challenge as a small island nation facing water scarcity.
Nineteen years later, Singapore’s Changi Water Reclamation Plant can treat up to 900 million liters of wastewater daily. And they give tours.
How can wastewater that we flush down the toilet, become potable and safe to drink? From this TED-Ed by Francis de los Reyes, directed by JodyPrody:
“Reusing our wastewater actually happens all the time at larger scales. The wastewater from a town or city may be discharging to a lake or river, and another town downstream may be using the same lake or river as a drinking water source. Thus, ‘indirect reuse’ is happening all over the world.”
“However, the direct treatment of wastewater to make it a drinking water source is needed today more than ever.
“Wastewater is classified into several types, but the primary three are:
• Gray water used in sinks, bathing, and laundry;
• Yellow water containing just urine;
• Black water which has come into contact with feces.
“Globally, we generate enough wastewater to fill about 400,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools every day. In cities and towns with sewage systems, this wastewater combines in underground pipes, which actually aren’t filled with feces. The average 4,000 liters of sewage contains only a single liter of solid fecal material. However, sewage is still rife with dangerous contaminants, including billions of pathogens and microorganisms, trace chemicals, and excess inorganic nutrients that can pollute rivers and lakes. So even if we aren’t planning to drink this concoction, we still need to clean it; which is why sewer systems typically run to wastewater treatment plants.”
Related reading: Singapore is leading the way in recycling wastewater. What can it teach the rest of the world?
And an interactive: Where does your poop go? A functional journey through the Chicago-area sewer system.
Watch these related videos next:
• Explore wastewater treatment with LeVar Burton
• The history of the toilet from ancient Mesopotamia to modern day
• The powder that can turn sludge into clean drinking water
• Turn human waste into drinking water – Janicki Omniprocessor
• Poop Guy: A dad who is revolutionizing sanitation in Pune, India
Curated, kid-friendly, independently-published. Support this mission by becoming a sustaining member today.