Benefits and Risks of Irrigation with Treated Wastewater
© 2013 EPFL
Wastewater reuse in agriculture is a widespread practice in developing countries, especially in urban areas where water shortages and poverty encourage people to use that marginal resource.
Research was carried out in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) with the objectives, among other things, of evaluating the impact on soil quality of irrigation with industrial treated wastewater. In this particular case, chemical analysis, assessment of the soil’s hydrostructural stability by measurements, and modelling of shrinkage curves and threedimensional fluorescence spectra analysis revealed a strong deterioration of the soil structure in a relatively short period of time. Over a long period, it is possible that such a degradation could result in a total alteration of the soil with highly detrimental agronomic consequences, as confirmed by a 50% decrease in eggplant yields between the first and second year of irrigation with recycled water.