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The final costs the factory paid were:

Construction of the treatment plant	1 million dollar
O&M (operation & maintenance costs	30,000 dollar/month

Factory B (the competitor of Factory A, the same size) paid a Study for Waste Minimization, then a Feasibility Study for Effluent Treatment and Disposal. Only after these studies were completed the factory asked the provider to construct a treatment plant based on the TOR prepared by the Feasibility Study.

The final costs the factory paid were:

The waste minimization study	50,000 dollar
Implementation of the waste minimization program	200,000 dollar
The feasibility study for effluent treatment	50,000 dollar
Construction of the treatment plant	500,000 dollar
O&M (operation & maintenance costs	10,000 dollar/month
Benefits from waste recovery/processing	- 10,000 dollar/month

Conclusions:

1. Factory B invested less money than Factory A in the construction of the effluent treatment plant and reduced its O&M costs to zero.
2. This was possible because the Waste Minimization Study and the Feasibility Study for Effluent Treatment and Disposal allowed the factory to make the investments in a more intelligent and efficient way.

A Waste Minimization Study is oriented to:

• identify each one of the waste sources within the factory
• characterize the quantity and quality of each waste stream
• minimize waste production
• recycle and recover materials and energy
• optimize mixing / separation of waste streams in order to neutralize pollutants and reduce treatment costs

• Physical separation of water, oils and particles:
  • Passive separators
  • Mechanical separators
  • Air Flotation
  • Membrane technology
• Biological degradation of pollutants:
  • Intensive units: anaerobic reactors, activated sludge, trickling filters.
  • Extensive units: waste stabilization ponds, constructed wetlands.
  • Semi-intensive units: low-energy aerated lagoons, low-rate trickling filters.
• Physico-chemical degradation of refractory pollutants by AOPs (Advanced Oxidation Processes):
  • Fenton
  • UV
  • Hydrogen Peroxide
  • Electrolytical cells
  • Combined systems
• Disinfection (not always necessary for industrial effluents):
  • Chlorination
  • UV radiation
  • Plug-flow maturation ponds
  • Batch operated wastewater reservoirs

There may be several alternatives for the disposal of the treated effluents, each one with different requirements for effluent treatment and quality.
For example:

• Discharge to the sea.
• Discharge to a stream or lake.
• Reuse within or outside the factory.
• Infiltration to the aquifer.
• Discharge to the municipal sewers network

Each alternative has different quality requirements and thus, of the type and level of treatment for the effluents.

A Feasibility Study for Effluent Treatment and Disposal is oriented to:

• Characterize the effluents to treat: composition, degradability, treatability, toxicity, etc.
• Identify alternatives for disposal of treated effluents.
• Define the quality and treatment requirements of each disposal alternative.
• Define different alternative technologies for the treatment of the effluents.
• Define implementation steps (immediate, medium-term, long-term).
• Estimate initial investment and O&M costs for each treatment and disposal alternative.
• Compare engineering and economical advantages and disadvantages of each alternative.
• Discuss with the client and recommend a treatment and disposal alternative which is the best for the specific conditions of the factory.
• Prepare the technical TOR (Terms of Reference) that the factory will send to the providers in order to receive price proposals for the implementation of the project.

Providers of equipment and chemicals are more interested in selling their products than in minimizing the investments and O&M costs of the client.

Providers can not perform an objective comparison between different waste minimization and effluent treatment alternatives because they will benefit from selling an expensive alternative.


How expensive are the waste minimization and feasibility studies ?
It depends on several parameters, mainly the size of the project and the complexity of the production processes in the factory.

In some cases the cost may reach the US$ 20,000 - 40,000 range for a Waste Minimization Study and another US$ 20,000 - 40,000 dollar for a Feasibility Study for Effluent Treatment and Disposal. But, the basic idea is that the benefits that the factory will receive from these studies (reduction of costs in effluents treatment and disposal) must exceed by large the costs of the studies themselves.


It is possible to contract the same consultant to perform both studies ?
Yes. The two studies are highly interactive and thus it is a good idea to have both of them performed by the same consultant.
Besides, the consultant may reduce the price if it receives a contract for both studies.