Wastewater treatment using gamma irradiation: Tetouan pilot station, Morocco

The increasing demand on limited water supplies has accelerated the wastewater reuse and reclamation. We investigated gamma irradiation effects on wastewater by measuring differences in the legislated parameters, aiming to reuse the wastewater. Effluents samples were collected at the urban wastewater treatment station of Tetouan and were irradiated at different doses ranging from 0 to 14 kGy using a Co60 gamma source. The results showed an elimination of bacterial flora, a decrease of biochemical and chemical oxygen demand, and higher conservation of nutritious elements. The results of this study indicated that gamma irradiation might be a good choice for the reuse of wastewater for agricultural activities.