THE LIMITATIONS OF SUBSURFACE FLOW CONSTRUCTED WETLANDS APPLYING IN CITIES IN MALAYSIA

Abstract

The safety and adequacy of water resources are of vital importance to humanity. With economic and social development, urbanization has accelerated, and the population of townships has continued to rise, increasing the amount of domestic sewage discharged in towns. Although its discharge meets the Grade A standard of the Environmental Quality (Industrial Effluent) Regulations 2009, it is still lower than the Grade IV water in the National Water Quality Standards and belongs to the sewage category. In this study, a qualitative research method is used to investigate the limitations of the application of constructed wetlands in Malaysian cities. This study provides interview data on the views of the two water companies on the application of constructed wetlands to sewage treatment plants. This study finds that land and cost are significant factors restricting the application of constructed wetlands in cities. Therefore, the publication of relevant policies on the comprehensive utilization of water resources may encourage sewage treatment plants to apply tertiary sewage treatment technologies further to purify wastewater.

Keywords: Constructed Wetlands, Interviews surveys, Sungai Selangor, Sewage treatment plant, tail water, Wastewater