Publication Details

Category Text Publication
Reference Category Journals
DOI 10.2166/wrd.2025.011
Licence creative commons licence
Title (Primary) Chemical and microbial similarities and heterogeneities of wastewater from single-household cesspits for decentralised water reuse
Author Görnt, A.; Wilkes, T.; Seelig, A.; Sempert, T.; Brasse, G.; Maier, R.; Zahn, D. ORCID logo ; Chang, H.-D.; Reemtsma, T.; Dittmann, D.; Haberkamp, J.; Reynaert, E.; Ruhl, A.S.
Source Titel Water Reuse
Year 2025
Department EAC
Volume 15
Issue 2
Page From 255
Page To 270
Language englisch
Topic T9 Healthy Planet
Data and Software links https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14731601
Supplements https://iwa.silverchair-cdn.com/iwa/content_public/journal/jwrd/15/2/10.2166_wrd.2025.011/3/jwrd0150255supp1.docx?Expires=1755256824&Signature=bgd~qJlI79NgKdq7XaKalxw3qXjGbPFJAvlYIFsvBZDkaW-eToj6BdIEkeuWk2CfnT2et3QibwLHnD1b0wKrfSGuWrg23uqctqu23xs32aDBcm~1XBBpIfnv2dyiqX0JKAL2IpNCMkJRlEad2T~l-JR0JJ2LzeWAaLYYRLXBJUEiFCrR-mm4dqWZCVca08~VE~zkaNCw8anHpOpoGRcsfdkAWH-CC2uaRUyX3Vat6BeGbkTt5lgTbgMKueCGXpQe38bTnpXOsddiio7GRdT7-pr3nM9IdHtSzkKccXCyryEKwHu6PR6P~v3DfKgMPiQc~EfKuCkaFwMZ3omPA1FJMA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAIE5G5CRDK6RD3PGA
Keywords bacterial cell concentrations; domestic wastewater; on-site wastewater collection; organic micropollutants; organic trace substances; water quality
Abstract In Brandenburg, Germany, 8% of households rely on single-household cesspits for wastewater collection. This study analysed the chemical and microbial characteristics of wastewaters from 12 single-household cesspits and pit lorry samples to assess their suitability for water reuse. The analyses include physico-chemical parameters (pH, electrical conductivity, chemical and biochemical oxygen demand, total nitrogen, ammonium, phosphorus), 11 heavy metals, 67 organic trace substances, and bacteria concentrations. Measurements showed strong similarity across single-household cesspits for pH, electrical conductivity, Shannon Index and Richness of the microbial communities. In contrast, there was high variability across cesspits for oxygen demand, nitrogen, phosphorus, heavy metals, organic trace substances and total and damaged bacteria concentrations. Comparison with municipal wastewater showed that cesspits contained higher concentrations of organic and inorganic pollutants, which may be related to household-specific use patterns and limited dilution by wastewater from other sources. Physico-chemical analyses indicate that cesspits contained mainly easily degradable organic substances. The high variability of wastewater from cesspits points to the need for flexible treatment approaches. The results enhance the understanding of composition of wastewater from decentralised sources in Central Europe and support efforts towards sustainable water management and the development of adaptable treatment solutions for different wastewater compositions.
Persistent UFZ Identifier https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=31036
Görnt, A., Wilkes, T., Seelig, A., Sempert, T., Brasse, G., Maier, R., Zahn, D., Chang, H.-D., Reemtsma, T., Dittmann, D., Haberkamp, J., Reynaert, E., Ruhl, A.S. (2025):
Chemical and microbial similarities and heterogeneities of wastewater from single-household cesspits for decentralised water reuse
Water Reuse 15 (2), 255 - 270 10.2166/wrd.2025.011