Effluent recycle and waste minimization in prawn farm effluent

Prawn farms withdraw huge quantities of sea water and discharge 5–30% of it back to the estuary during water exchange process. The effluent from the prawn ponds contains large quantities of solids, nitrogen, phosphorus and algae and it cannot be discharged into the estuary or ocean without proper effluent treatment. Sedimentation could form a partial treatment system. In this study, about 28–38% removal was achieved at an overflow rate of 40 m3/m2.d. Because of low loading, it requires a large area. Co-culture systems may be technically feasible but it is difficult to control the prawns growth. Considering the water quantity requirement, it is necessary to design a high rate treatment system to treat the effluent and recycle it in the system. A high rate floating medium filter led to 68% removal of suspended solids at 20 m3/m2.h and with a depth of 1.2 m. The removal efficiency increased when flocculant was added. A combined downflow floating medium and sand filter gave rise to almost 90% solids and phosphorus removal. Another way is to control the nutrient discharge by optimizing the feed and reducing its waste.