Nitrogen flow analysis for environmental sanitation planning : a case study in Cantho City, Vietnam | |
| Author | Tran Van Cam |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.EV-09-21 |
| Subject(s) | Urban ecology--Sanitation--Vietnam--Can Tho Nitrogen compounds |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Environmental Engineering and Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | In recent years, the Gross Domestic of Product (GDP) of Can Tho city has increased quickly from 7% in year 2007 to 9% in year 2008. Accompanying the economic growth, the environmental degradation resulted from the development of industries, agriculture, aquacultures and so on. Regarding rural areas, My Khanh commune is confronting the water pollution caused by human excreta through fishpond latrines, livestock and fish feeding and so on. Thus, Nitrogen controls from human activities are important for the conservation of water quality and environmental protection. So this study is to assess status of environmental sanitation of My Khanh commune by Material Flow Analysis (MFA) method through (i) identifying the existing environmental sanitation systems, (ii) studying flow and mass balance of Nitrogen relating to environmental sanitation and agricultural system, (iii) and recommending suitable solutions for improvement of environmental sanitation systems. The results from MFA method showed that some processes of the system were creating the environmental pollution. Moreover, wastewater of aquaculture, which is about 489 ton of N per year, made groundwater, surface water and soil polluted. In addition, the leachate of process “Crop” was discharging 123 tons of Nitrogen per year to groundwater, surface water and soil. Furthermore, solid waste of households, crop and open dumps also contributed to environmental pollution. Excreta from households, on-site sanitation system (OSSS) and Livestock also discharged to groundwater, surface water and soil. Finally, N content in river water is very high (1.2 mg/L). Regarding the sensitivity analysis, the sensitivity of changes of Nitrogen output flow in the process of “Market”, “Livestock”, “Aquaculture”, “Crop”, and “Household” were concerned in parameters of interest as food 4, animal feed, fish feed, water 7 and food 3, respectively. Based on the above results, the study proposed three scenarios on decreasing environmental pollution and reusing the nitrogen recovery as follows: 1. Compost septage and multi-organic solid waste and reuse composting products for agriculture. 2. Wastewater of Aquaculture reuse to agriculture. 3. Reduce leachate of crop to groundwater, surface water and soil. Among them, the scenario 1 is an economic and suitable solution for the local people. The scenario 2 needs behavioral changes of local people and it seems difficult to change their habits. Scenario 3 is a good solution to reduce the load N in groundwater, surface water and soil. |
| Year | 2009 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Environmental Engineering and Management (EV) |
| Chairperson(s) | Thammarat Koottatep; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Preeda Pakpian;Nguyen, Thi Kim Oanh; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Cantho scholarship program; |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2009 |