Nicolas Cunha Apatie (Uruguay)

IHE Delft│Netherlands & UNIVALLE│Colombia

Treatment of slaughterhouse wastewater by a membrane bioreactor (MBR) (Uruguay)

Meat processing is one of the most important industries in Uruguay, but also one of the most significant polluters of the water courses. Most of the slaughterhouses use outdated and ineffective wastewater treatment technologies. My research evaluated the performance of a state-of-the-art technology for the treatment of slaughterhouse wastewater. I placed a pilot MBR at a slaughterhouse plant in Uruguay. The MBR system performed as expected, removing organic matter, solids, and nitrogen to below local and international standards. The implementation of this technology in the meat processing sector in Uruguay will considerably alleviate the pollution of the river basins; in addition, it may bring opportunities for water reuse.