6.3.1 Wastewater treatment
Metric: Water usage and care
A process in place to treat wastewater.
Prince of Songkla University has established a central wastewater treatment process to ensure that wastewater generated from university buildings and operational units is properly collected, treated, monitored, and verified before discharge.
University Wastewater Management Policy
Prince of Songkla University has established a university-level wastewater management policy to ensure that wastewater generated from university activities is properly collected, treated, monitored, and managed before discharge.
The policy requires new buildings and major building renovations to provide appropriate preliminary wastewater treatment before wastewater is discharged into the University’s sewerage system. It also requires continuous monitoring and control of wastewater quality from university units and from treated effluent before discharge.
The University further promotes the reuse of treated wastewater for appropriate purposes within the campus, such as landscape irrigation, and supports research and innovation aimed at improving wastewater management.
This policy provides the institutional framework for the University’s wastewater treatment, monitoring, reuse, and continual improvement activities.
Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) wastewater treatment system.
At Hat Yai Campus, wastewater from university buildings and facilities is conveyed through a dedicated sewer network to the central Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) wastewater treatment system. The treatment process comprises a wastewater collection basin, aeration treatment, and a polishing or stabilization pond before final discharge.
The system has a treatment capacity of approximately 1,000 cubic metres of wastewater per day.
Real-Time Monitoring and Operational Control
The University has installed an IoT-based monitoring system to support the operation and surveillance of the wastewater treatment process. The system enables responsible personnel to monitor operational conditions and conduct preliminary checks of treated-water quality before discharge.
In addition to real-time monitoring, wastewater samples are periodically collected and submitted to external laboratories for independent analysis. This provides an additional level of quality assurance and helps ensure that treated effluent complies with applicable discharge standards.
Treated Effluent Quality
PSU monitors treated wastewater before it is discharged into the environment. External water-quality testing confirms that the treated effluent complies with the required standards.
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), one of the key indicators of wastewater-treatment performance, is maintained at no more than 18 milligrams per litre before discharge.
External verification of treated wastewater quality.
Wastewater quality is periodically verified through external laboratory analysis, including monitoring of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) to ensure compliance with applicable discharge standards.
Operational Efficiency and Maintenance
The wastewater treatment system is subject to routine and preventive maintenance to ensure reliable operation. Maintenance procedures include scheduled preventive maintenance, corrective maintenance, equipment inspection, and emergency response where required.
The treatment process uses approximately 0.2 kWh of electricity per cubic metre of wastewater treated, with an estimated treatment cost of approximately THB 1.65 per cubic metre.
Together, the central treatment system, IoT-based monitoring, external laboratory testing, and preventive maintenance procedures demonstrate that Prince of Songkla University has an established and continuously monitored process for treating wastewater before discharge into the environment.