Performance of a Constructed Wetland and Pretreatment System Receiving Potato Farm Wash Water

Many potato processors require on-farm washing of potatoes, creating large quantities of wastewater that requires treatment, starting in the fall until the end of the potato storage period in mid-summer. We studied the treatment of wastewater from a potato farm in Ontario, Canada, using a system of pretreatment (sedimentation, aeration) followed by a surface-flow wetland with a dense growth of cattails (Typha sp.). The raw wastewater had high average concentrations of 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5; 1113 mg*L-1), total suspended solids (TSS; 4338 mg*L-1), total nitrogen (TN; 311 mg*L-1) and total phosphorus (TP; 42.5 mg*L-1). Due to high influent loads, the pretreatment was enlarged during annual sediment cleaning at the end of Year 1 (Y1), which increased the hydraulic retention time and delayed the seasonal onset of wetland loading from winter in Y1 to spring in Year 2 (Y2). Total concentration reduction for the treatment system (pretreatment + wetland) in Y2 was 96% BOD5, 99% TSS, 86% TN and 90% TP; and in Y1 was 79% BOD5, 97% TSS, 62% TN and 54% TP. Overall, the best treatment in both the pretreatment and the wetland was seen in spring months. The enlarged pretreatment system enabled seasonal loading of the wetland during the spring and summer, which facilitated improved treatment performance.