Sewage

Septic Tank-
==Sewage consists of water and everything else you dump down the drain. Septic systems need lots of space to function properly. A septic tank is a underground container that holds all the sewage from your home. In order for septic tanks to work they need to have houses that are spaced apart, they do not work well in crowded towns or cities. The sewage in the septic tanks runs through a series of pipes that lay underground. After the sewage is in the septic tank, it goes into a treatment facility which takes out most of the harm causing bacteria. These facilities let out clean water which formerly contained sewage. The solid waste left from the treatment facilities is used as fertilizer. Waste from animals, such as cows and horses, also may find its way to a stream. This can cause as much or more problems as human waste. Treatment plants can help the environment, non-treated or partly treated sewage cause most of the problems. Swimming in contaminated water is dangerous. It can cause bacteria-induced illnesses, especially if you drink the water. The sewage sludge in water makes it murky and does not allow sunlight in. The sewage in the water can kill plants and fish. The plants on the bottom are growing too fast because the dead plants are their food. The plants that grow on the bottom create a problem because they take up too much oxygen and fish are beginning to die.==

Sewage Systems-
==Sewage is wastewater that humans create. You need to dispose sewage because it contains harmful bacteria which can lead to diseases such as E. coli. You dispose of sewage with a sewer system. There are two types of sewer systems, sewage and septic. A sewage system consists of underground tunnels or pipes. In these pipes gravity pulls sewage towards treatment facilities. In treatment facilities there are processes of removing contaminants from sewage. There are 3 steps in sewage treatment. The first is when the solids are separated from the wastewater stream. Next the dissolved sewage waste is changed into a solid. Then the processed sewage sludge are neutralized and either disposed or reused. Then the water taken out of sewage can be taken into a stream, river, bay, lagoon or wetland. If it is really clean, it can also be used for water sinking into the ground and entering the water cycle. Sewage systems are expensive and shouldn’t be used in rural areas. It shouldn’t because then you would need many more underground pipes which can be costly. For the industrial district of Basgo, Maine to have a sewage system may not be convenient. This is because there is a river between where the treatment facility is and the housing development. You would have to build another treatment facility on the other side of the river which may be expensive for the town.==