Blackwater Overview

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Blackwater Overview

Blackwater Defined

Blackwater contains all types of wastewater from residential, commercial, and industrial sites, including: human waste, graywater; combined sewer/ stormwater systems also convey rain/ stormwater. Blackwater is also referred to as sewage, wastewater and sewer water.

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Collection Potential

Water recycling plant in El Segundo, CA, producing five different qualities of recycled water for five different types of customers

Urban areas in California have wastewater collection (sewerage) systems that convey blackwater to centralized treatment systems in buried pipes. In these cases, collection is not the issue, as it is…

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Hydrology

Human intervention via technology can speed up blackwater purification processes.

Reclamation of blackwater and its reuse represents a reconfiguration and acceleration of the natural hydrological cycle. It is well established that nature recycles water ad infinitum. All water on planet…

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Uses of Recycled Water

Typical Highway landscaping irrigated with recycled water, maintained by CalTrans.

Recycled water is defined in the California Water Code as “water which, as a result of treatment of waste [water], is suitable for a direct beneficial use or a controlled…

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Typical Components of Blackwater Reclamation and Reuse Systems

Reverse osmosis units employed at Orange County Water District to produce potable recycled water for groundwater replenishment.

Blackwater treatment systems intended for water recycling include some or all of the following components, usually provided by a public utility—County, City, Water District, Sanitation District, etc.

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Blackwater Quality and Filtration

Purple is the standard color signifying recycled water for pipes

Filtration and disinfection of secondary effluent are key to production of tertiary-treated recycled water. Tertiary-treated recycled water is the most common quality of water reclaimed from blackwater, and used in…

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Benefits of Using Recycled Water

Reduces stress on limited supply of fresh water Environmental protection of waterways, reducing discharges of hyper-clean effluent from treatment of blackwater into the rivers, lakes, oceans and the groundwater.

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Costs

Water reclaimed from blackwater is generally more expensive to produce and deliver than potable water bought from water agencies. However, that cost is considerably lower than the cost of the…

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Energy Use

Energy use for water recycling is generally far less than that required to develop other water resources, such as desalination or increased infrastructure from already tapped water sources as shown…

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