WASTE-WATER CHARACTERISTICS IN PALESTINE

Wastewater treatment plants in Palestine (West Bank and Gaza Strip) ha ve been designed upon assumptions of wastewater characteristics and am ount of flow, because no data were available at all. This study is foc used on the collection and measurement of wastewater quantity and qual ity, which will be used as a basis for formulating a strategic plan fo r wastewater treatment in Palestine. In view of the limited water reso urces, reclaimed wastewater will be used for agriculture, which, at pr esent, is done at a very limited scale. The infrastructure in Palestin e used to be a neglected issue, particularly with regard to sewerage. Blocked pipes and flooded manholes are daily events especially in Gaza Strip. All existing: treatment plants are heavily overloaded. Groundw ater resources in Gaza Strip become more and more polluted with nitrat e concentrations exceeding 100 mg NO3-N/I resulting from seepage from cesspits and effluent discharges into wadis. Due to scarcity of water, domestic water consumption is very low, which leads to highly concent rated wastewater similar to industrial one. In one city in the West Ba nk, the COD reached a value of 3,670 mg/l, although all the water reac hing the outfall is of domestic type. (C) 1996 IAWQ. Published by Else vier Science Ltd.