The aim of this book is to present an overview of the state of the art with regard to the function, application and design of TWSs in order to better protect surface water from contamination. Accordingly, it also presents applications of constructed wetlands with regard to climatic and cultural aspects. The use of artificial and natural treatment wetland systems (TWSs) for wastewater treatment is an approach that has been developed over the last thirty years. Europe is currently home to roughly 10,000 constructed wetland treatment systems (CWTSs), which simulate the aquatic habitat conditions of natural marsh ecosystems; roughly 3,500 systems are in operation in Germany alone. TWSs can also be found in many other European countries, for example 200 – 400 in Denmark, 400 – 600 in Great Britain, and ca. 1,000 in Poland. Most of the existing systems serve as local or individual household treatment systems. CWTSs are easy to operate and do not require specialized maintenance; further, no biological sewage sludge is formed during treatment processes. As TWSs are resistant to fluctuations in hydraulic loads, they are primarily used in rural areas as well as in urbanized areas with dispersed habitats, where conventional sewer systems and central conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) cannot be applied due to the high costs they would entail. TWSs are usually applied at the 2nd stage of domestic wastewater treatment, after mechanical treatment, and/or at the 3rd stage of treatment in order to ensure purification of effluent from conventional biological reactors and re-naturalization. New applications of TWSs include rainwater treatment as well as industrial and landfill leachate treatment. TWSs are well suited to these fields, as they can potentially remove not only organic matter and nitrogen compounds but also trace metals and traces of persistent organic pollutants and pathogens. Based on the practical experience gathered to date, and on new research regarding the processes and mechanisms of pollutant removal and advances in the systems properties and design, TWSs continue to evolve.

The book presents a comprehensive up-to-date survey of wetland design techniques and operational experience from treatment wetlands. This book is the first and only global synthesis of information related to constructed treatment wetlands. Types of constructed wetlands, major design parameters, role of vegetation, hydraulic patterns, loadings, treatment efficiency, construction, operation and maintenance costs are discussed in depth. History of the use of constructed wetlands and case studies from various parts of the world are included as well. Constructed Wetlands for Pollution Control will be indispensable for wastewater treatment researchers and designers, decision makers in public authorities, wetland engineers, environmentalists and landscape ecologists. Contents Biological methods for the treatment of wastewaters Types of constructed wetland Aplications of the technology Framework for interpreting and predicting water quality improvement Mechanisms and results for water quality improvement Design Plants and planting System start-up Economics Case studies Scientific and Technical Report No.8

Wetlands have been used for uncontrolled wastewater disposal for centuries. However, the change in attitude towards wetlands during the 1950s and 1960s caused the minimization of the use of natural wetlands for wastewater treatment (at least in developed countries). Constructed wetlands have been used for wastewater treatment for about forty years. Constructed wetland treatment systems are engineered systems that have been designed and constructed to utilize the natural processes for removal of pollutants. They are designed to take advantage of many of the same processes that occur in natural wetlands, but do so within a more controlled environment. The aim of this book is to summarize the knowledge on horizontal s- surface flow constructed wetlands (HF CWs) and objectively evaluate their treatment efficiency under various conditions. The information on this type of wastewater treatment technology is scattered in many publications but a comprehensive summary based on world-wide experience has been lacking. The book provides an extensive overview of this treatment technology around the world, including examples from more than 50 countries and examples of various types of wastewater treated in HF CWs.

Constructed Wetlands for Water Quality Improvement is a virtual encyclopedia of state-of-the-art information on the use of constructed wetlands for improving water quality. Well-organized and easy-to-use, this book features contributions from prominent scientists and provides important case studies. It is ideal for anyone involved in the application of constructed wetlands in treating municipal and industrial wastewater, mine drainage, and non-point source pollution. Constructed Wetlands for Water Quality Improvement is a "must" for industrial and municipal water treatment professionals, consulting engineers, federal and state regulators, wetland scientists and professionals, ecologists, environmental health professionals, planners, and industrial environmental managers.

Selected proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Wetland Systems for Water Pollution Control, held in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA, 11-16 November 2000. Wetlands are now considered as a widely applicable low-cost alternative for treating municipal, industrial and agricultural effluents. Increasing numbers of wetland projects have come into operation over the last decade, notably those in Florida. IWA's 7th Wetlands conference provided a forum for the synthesis and interpretation of the current status of treatment wetlands. The conference reflected the interdisciplinary nature of the topic, with a diversity of delegates from scientific and engineering disciplines contributing. It addressed research information on current understanding of treatment wetlands, and the need to transfer basic research information to managers involved in solving applied problems; and identified future directions for design and management of treatment wetlands. From a very large programme (of over 200 oral and poster presentations), 86 papers have been selected for these proceedings. As well as authoritative keynote presentations, there are papers on: phosphorus removal and transformations; nitrogen removal and transformations; pathogen removal; optimisation and modelling; ecological considerations; subsurface flow wetlands; surface flow wetlands; industrial wastewaters; agricultural wastewaters; and stormwater. They constitute an outstanding summary of our current knowledge of wetland systems in management of the water environment.

This book describes how natural or constructed wetlands can be used to reduce pollution of freshwater and coastal ecosystems, while still preserving their biodiversity and ecological functions. Through a series of case histories described in 10 chapters in the monograph, the readers will gain an understanding of the opportunities, as well as the challenges associated with reducing point and non-point source pollution using natural, restored or constructed wetlands. The target audience will be water practitioners involved in projects utilizing integrated watershed management approaches to pollution abatement, as well as researchers who are designing projects focused on this topic.