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However, by adopting and implementing some precautionary measures and practices, these negative effects of wastewater use can be minimized, making it a safe and reliable source of irrigation. Wastewater is used for crop irrigation as an alternative to freshwater. Wastewater collection, disposal, and use in agriculture have a long history. Nowadays, it has become a common practice in many countries around the globe to use wastewater for irrigation.
This practice of wastewater crop irrigation has mitigated water deficit crises, to a large extent, especially in arid and semi-arid areas of the world. The nutritional value of wastewater has also been an attraction of its widespread use for crop irrigation. Simultaneously, untreated wastewater irrigation can provoke numerous environmental and human health issues. One of the main issues related to this practice is the build-up of heavy metals in soil, plants, food chains, and ultimately in human beings. When the environmental and human health issues related to wastewater crop irrigation are assessed globally, there exists a considerable difference between the developed and developing countries.
The collection, recycling, and reuse of wastewater in the agricultural sector is better adapted and operated in developed countries compared to the developing world. Social, economic, corporate, and legislative issues are hindering its proper use in the developing world. Keeping in view the rapid population growth and economic development as well as the uncertainty over climate change, the wastewater use in the agricultural sector may face many challenges.
Therefore, the wastewater collection, recycling, and reuse have good prospects in the future, especially in rapidly growing and heavily populated cities, arid and semi-arid areas, and in developing countries. Thus, strategies and techniques for water saving should be methodized on priority. Finally, further scientific research regarding the use of wastewater irrigation is needed for the more effective and sustainable development and adaptation of wastewater irrigation systems, especially in less developed areas.
National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Published online May 1. Find articles by Sana Khalid. Find articles by Muhammad Shahid.
Find articles by Natasha. Find articles by Tania Sarwar. Find articles by Ali Haidar Shah. Abstract Population densities and freshwater resources are not evenly distributed worldwide. Introduction Water is an essential component of life, but it is a susceptible and finite resource that has qualitative vulnerability and quantitative limitations. Open in a separate window. The Current Global Scenario of Wastewater Use for Crop Irrigation Nowadays, under freshwater scarce conditions, it becomes almost mandatory for farmers to consider and use any sources of water, especially in many arid and semi-arid regions [ 12 ].
Table 1 The wastewater production, collection, treatment, and reuse for crop irrigation in different countries in relation to the total agricultural area Source, Aquastat-FAO [ 9 ]. The possible food chain contamination by wastewater crop irrigation.
Table 2 The effect of wastewater and freshwater on vegetable nutrients and heavy metal contents. The Effect of Wastewater on the Physico-Chemical Properties of Soil Wastewater application changes some physicochemical properties of the irrigated soil. The Effect of Wastewater on Soil pH The soil pH is the master variable that controls the partitioning of metals between the solid and solution phases of soil.
The Effect of Wastewater on Soil Cations and Anions Irrigation water comprises of inorganic constituents; primarily, the dissolved nutrients Table 2 and salts, however, these salts vary greatly in both composition and concentration. The Effect of Wastewater on Soil Microbial Community The soil is a heterogeneous environment in both space and time and the microbial activity is focused at the localized sites on and around the organic residues. Microbes Microbes Count Reference Coliforms 3. Table 4 The heavy metal concentration in wastewater, soil, and plants in relation to the transfer and bioaccumulation factors.
Table 5 The health risk assessment for vegetables cultivated using wastewater. Health Risk Assessment after Food Chain Contamination by Wastewater Irrigation Estimating the level of exposure of PTEs and tracing their routes of contamination to the target organisms are critical for understanding the health risks involved [ 25 , ].
Table 6 The heavy metal soil contamination, soil-plant transfer, root-shoot translocation, and health risk assessment parameters used in different risk assessment and remediation studies. Future Perspectives The above-mentioned data show that wastewater crop irrigation has both positive and negative effects.
The environmental protection laws and their proper implementation totally differ in developing and developed countries. Generally, the cities in developed countries have well-established and adopted environmentally friendly practices and environmentally sustainable approaches regarding wastewater disposal, treatment, and reuse in the agricultural sector. However, the scenario is very much alarming in developing countries, especially in highly populated areas of the Indo-Pak Sub-continent. Therefore, there will be a need for more systematic approaches in industrial and agricultural sectors to tackle this environmental and health dilemma.
Similarly, the treatment of industrial wastewater before its discharge is also a key prerequisite to effectively alleviate its negative environmental effects. The proper establishment of wastewater treatment techniques can address the growing demands both in terms of quantity and quality.
In the agricultural sector, the development of suitable irrigation approaches can be highly effective for its safe use. It is well-established that environmental contamination can be greatly controlled using a proper irrigation method. Climate change has recently emerged as a key environmental challenge. The uncertainty of this anthropogenic-assisted natural phenomena and irregularity of the environment has to be faced and tacked properly. The scattered pattern of droughts and rainfall over the temporal scale will aggravate water shortages in some areas while flooding other areas.
Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology Residue Reviews locales, magnitudes, fates, and toxicology of the persisting residues of these. Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology. Series Ed.: de Voogt, Pim. Volumes published with the title: Residue Reviews. Residues of.
Under such conditions, there will be a need for appropriate techniques and wastewater disposal infrastructure to collect, recycle, and distribute wastewater, protect the soil, and optimize the management. In areas arid, semi-arid where fresh water supply is short, the mixing of wastewater with ground or surface water can greatly dilute the PTE concentrations in the applied mixed irrigation water.
In this way, the risk of PTEs accumulating in soil and crops, as well as the associated health hazards, can be minimized. In order to effectively manage this environmental and health issue, there is need to properly implement laws and regulations on wastewater discharge and use in the agricultural sector, especially in less developed countries.
The reports show that farmers in less developed countries do not pay enough attention to such laws and regulations, which results in environmental and health issue. Therefore, there is a need for strict regulatory systems, at the local, national, and international level, for effectively managing wastewater irrigation in the agricultural sector. Although abutment data are available regarding the wastewater use for crop irrigation, its effect both positive and negative on the soil, on plants, and on humans, there is limited data available with respect to the chemical speciation of the different contaminants especially PTEs in wastewater generated from different sectors at different time periods.
Similarly, the plant physiological responses overproduction of reactive oxygen species, lipid peroxidation and tolerance mechanisms activation of antioxidative enzymes, production of phytochelatins, glutathione, and so forth remain unexplored under the wastewater crop irrigation scenario. Consequently, the environmental and health risk of that contaminant can vary under these circumstances. Further research work is needed in this regard. Conclusions Wastewater is used for crop irrigation as an alternative to freshwater.
Conflicts of Interest The authors declare no conflict of interest. Past, present, and future. Wastewater Reuse in Agriculture: A Review about Its Limitations and Benefits.
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PTEs are even capable of inducing toxic effects to living organisms, including human beings, at very low levels due to the absence of proper defense mechanisms to mitigate the toxic effects of these metals and to remove them from the body. Secretions and Exudates in Biological Systems. A global, spatially-explicit assessment of irrigated croplands influenced by urban wastewater flows. Find articles by Natasha. You can read this item using any of the following Kobo apps and devices:
Confrontin the Livelihood and Environmental Realities. Agricultural use of untreated urban wastewater in Ghana; pp. A nationwide assessment of wastewater use in Pakistan: An obscure activity or a vitally important one? Central Soil Salinity Research Inst. Informal Irrigation in Urban West Africa: Baseline water quality of municipal ponds and metal removal ability of Typha latifolia L.
Wastewater use in Irrigated Agriculture: Wastewater use in Pakistan: The cases of Haroonabad and Faisalabad; pp. We will send you an SMS containing a verification code. Please double check your mobile number and click on "Send Verification Code". Enter the code below and hit Verify. Free Shipping All orders of Cash on Delivery Pay for your order in cash at the moment the shipment is delivered to your doorstep.
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