Green techniques for wastewaters

The growth of population and the diversification of its activities have resulted in an exponential increase in the generation of liquid and solid wastes in recent years. In view of the new scenario, the role of novel technologies intended to reduce these wastes, transform them into new sources, and reincorporate them to different processes is gaining a remarkable importance and has resulted in an environmentally concerned society. This chapter includes the main green technology processes applied for wastewater treatment. Conventional or nonconventional methods are specifically selected according to the characteristics of wastewater to be treated. Wastewaters containing high percentage of biodegradable matter are usually treated through conventional techniques. On the contrary, nonconventional techniques are extensively used for the treatment of wastewaters with high nondegradable matter percentages. These technologies constitute an effective response to the current needs of the earth to combat climate change, whose effects are dramatically increasing.