Artificial Wetlands: Pre-Columbian Inheritance for the Depuration of Polluted Water - Applications to the Sugarcane and Ethyl Alcohol Industry

摘要

In Mexico, around 80% of wastewater generated from different social and industrial activities are presently discharged to the receiving bodies without any previous treatment, resulting in a serious environmental and public health problem. Constructedwetlands (CW) or artificial wetlands represent a feasible alternative for such a problem since its low cost of maintenance and operation make them a very attractive technology from the economical and technical point of view since they perform very well in eliminating water pollutants. In this research, the principles of operation of these systems are presented, explaining how they are based on the same principles as the natural systems where ecological equilibrium is maintained. Some examples are given,especially of pathogenic organisms removal, as well as removal of recalcitrant pollutants such as heavy metals or complex organic compounds. This research group has just constructed a system in a senior high school within the frame of a project supported by the Direccion General de Asuntos del Personal Academico de la UNAM (DGAPA). The prototype system has the aim of promoting environmental education among the young students and their professors, especially in chemistry, physics, biology, and mathematics. An interesting application for the tertiary treatment ofvinasses from sugar cane-ethanol mills is the combination of an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor followed by a biodiscs reactor, and an "artificial wetlands system" (cane fields irrigation).