# Proposal design of wastewater treatment in the city of San Miguel, El Salvador

## 1) Infrastructure
One of the main problems of evacuation infrastructure sewage in the city of San
Miguel, El Salvador, is the lack of a treatment system adequate and efficient
wastewater primarily achieved partial or complete removal of all contaminants
present in water discharge, which must be collected and be given appropriate
treatment before being discharged into rivers, streams or other receiving body.
The network sewer system consists of a group of pipes and complementary
structures that receive and dispose wastewater from the population. The final
destination of the sewage is the largest river of San Miguel where there is currently
no effective treatment given polluting the receiving body.
## 2) Stakeholder
El Salvador is a country with a pluralistic political system for political administration,
the territory was divided into departments, and each of them there is a governor
elected by the executive, for local government departments are divided into
municipalities, which are autonomous in economic, technical and administrative,
but are required to collaborate with other public institutions at the national and
regional plans of development.
Initially, the mayors who were in charge of controlling and managing water and
sewage of El Salvador; existed under the Ministry of Public Works called
"Department of Water Resources".
In 1961, the first steps towards the formation of a new institution, which would be
autonomous character and public service, with the firm intention of providing the
citizens of the country the precious liquid is given.
With this, the State sought to delegate part of its activities in multiple autonomous
entities, which would be responsible for executing like himself, under the premise
of serving the population with a higher level of efficiency in the context of a modern
state. So, as The National Water and Sewerage ANDA
## 3) Problem demarcation
San Miguel is a department of El Salvador. Its provincial capital is San Miguel, a
town located 138 km from San Salvador. Bordered on the north by the Republic of
Honduras; on the east by the departments of Morazn and La Union; the west by
the departments of Cabaas and Usulutn; and on the south by the Pacific Ocean.
It covers an area of 593,98km and has a population of 247 119 inhabitants.

El Salvador has 10 000 255 kilometers of rivers; but most are contaminated,
especially in areas close to towns. The figure is worrying. "95% of the country's
surface water is contaminated."
The effects caused by untreated wastewater, discharged receiving water bodies in
El Salvador, are a source of pollution for the population, as they are holding great
number of pathogenic microorganisms and chemical compounds that alter human
health, animal and ecosystem.
Some of the municipalities in our country have collection network wastewater or
sewage, but in most cases these are waters are discharged to a receiving water
body, this being one creek, river, lake, pond, sea without any treatment and
causing the proliferation of gastrointestinal diseases infectious in the population,
especially those living in areas close to the download site or use it downstream
said liquid for daily and most serious task even when ingested by people without
using any method of purification, also causes deterioration of the aquatic
environment, affecting the original flora and fauna receiving water body.
The current sewer system was built in 1982 for which records an age of 29 years,
the system has since registered very few extensions which were branches of
collectors and small increases household connections.
For all of the above is necessary and urgent implementation of expanding the
network of pipes and wastewater treatment plant design according to the
conditions topographic and quality of wastewater generated and the values of
treated effluent required by the General Regulations of water waste, which will be
benefiting people affected directly and improving environmental conditions.
## 4) Key actors
Since 1987 legislation which requires the analysis of raw water to be drinkable is
active. The instrument called the Water Quality Index (ICA) was developed by the
National Sanitation Foundation USA. At the time, it is used by the National Service
of Territorial Studies (SNET) and the National Administration of Aqueducts and
Sewers (ANDA).
For five years, through a loan from the Inter-American Development Bank, ANDA
runs the Reform Programme Water Sector and Water and Sanitation Subsector.
Among the objectives is to promote the conservation and efficient use of water
resources.
Through this project, ANDA samples collected each month from different births in
the country to submit a water quality study. This process provides information on
the level of treatment you will have to do water, depending on its contamination.

Article 7 of the Special Regulations Wastewater says: "Every natural or legal

person, public or private, owner of a site, project or activity responsible for
producing or managing wastewater is discharged into a receiving environment,
hereinafter the holder shall install and operate treatment systems for wastewater
comply with the provisions of the relevant legislation and these Rules. "
## 5) Recommendations
Treatment systems will wastewater through conventional plants, comprising: pretreatment, which consists in implementing a system of fences, sand trap and Meter
Parshall flow; primary treatment followed by a Imhoff tank and / or primary settler;
thereafter a secondary treatment system incorporating a trickling filter and a
secondary settler; finally treatment is performed sludge through a sludge reactor a
sludge drying bed and septic tank.
It is recommended that a periodic review of each of the constituent elements of the
treatment plant, to ensure good the same or make necessary repairs in addition to
regular monitoring of the treatment plant to know the efficiency of the same.
In therefore must be made an integral waste management. "No physical treatment,
or chemical, biological treatment only one to attack bacteria," he said. As a result of
the concentration of metals in the water, people can produce cancers or birth
defects in future generations.
## 6) Concluding remarks
When the sewer system and treatment plant wastewater fulfill their design period is
recommended that their design is revised, in order to determine if the system
hydraulic sewer meets the specifications for a proper operation and if the treatment
plant is capable of treating waste water to the level required by the regulations
force.
## References
Water Supply and Sewerage, Environmental Engineering. Terence J. McGhee.
Sixth Edition, 1999. "Wastewater Engineering: Treatment, disposal and reuse",
Volumes 1 y 2, Metcalf & Eddy, Editorial McGraw-Hill. Third Edition, Mxico D.F.,
1997. Standards for Drinking Water Supply and Sewerage Sewage, A.N.D.A.
1998.