The Influence of DO on the Microbiological Community of the A2O Treatment of Municipal Wastewater in Alpine Regions

The ecosystem in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau region is fragile. And the excessive altitude and lower temperatures can lead to regional variations in the community composition and metabolic processes of microorganisms in wastewater treatment systems. To identify these variations, this paper explores the microbial community structure and metabolic processes of activated sludge in A 2 O wastewater treatment systems in alpine regions based on 16S rRNA sequencing technology and the PICRUSt2 database. Also, the effect of gradual changes in DO concentration on the biological treatment system was examined and analyzed. The results show that the composition of the microbial community is distinct compared to that of the plain areas. norank_f__AKYH767 and IMCC26207 were found as enriched bacterial genera in the aerobic and anoxic tanks in the alpine region, respectively. Microbial communities in alpine areas are more perceptive and competent in processing environmental signals. The degradation of carbon and nitrogen pollutants is not strongly affected by high altitude, provided that the DO concentration is not lower than 1.0 mg/L.