The untouched condition of Antarctica's environment is a result of its inherent absence of human activity. Nevertheless, with the introduction of scientific research stations and human presence, a considerable volume of wastewater has been produced by these research facilities. The wastewater needs to be treated before discharge and has strict rules and regulations set by the Antarctic Treaty (Annexure III). However, the performance of the wastewater treatment plant and the data on the quality of the effluents being discharged into the sea by different stations are limited. In this study, the performance of the wastewater treatment plant at Bharati research station located at Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica was investigated from 2015 to 2022. Physical and chemical parameters such as pH, EC, NH–N and COD were determined in effluents from the drinking water plant, blackwater and greywater plant from Bharati station. The pH and EC of the effluents were measured using portable probes, ammonia was measured spectrophotometrically, and COD was measured using the closed reflux digestion method. The monthly data of the effluents from 2015 to 2022 for pH, EC, NH–N and COD indicate values within the permissible limits except for a few parameters at a certain time frame. It was observed that the pH of black, grey and drinking water varied between pH 6.5 and 9.1. Both grey and blackwater showed a decreasing conductivity trend, suggesting decreased ionic content. The blackwater exhibited an increase in ammonia concentration and COD trend, indicating higher organic pollution levels, while the grey water displayed a decreasing trend in COD, indicating a reduction in organic matter content. The study also investigated the correlation between NH–N concentration in wastewater and greywater with levels of COD and compared these levels with standard values to assess effluent water quality. The data will provide baseline values to assess any malfunctioning of the wastewater system in treating the contaminants. Effluent data from other Antarctic stations show a high value compared with the effluents from Bharati station. Such variability largely depends on the station size, water usage and number of expedition members during the summer and winter seasons.

中文翻译：

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南极洲巴拉蒂站废水系统性能监测

南极洲环境未受破坏的状况是其固有的缺乏人类活动的结果。然而，随着科研站的引入和人类的存在，这些研究设施产生了大量的废水。废水在排放前需要进行处理，并有《南极条约》（附件三）规定的严格规则和规定。然而，污水处理厂的性能以及不同站排入大海的污水质量的数据有限。在这项研究中，对位于东南极洲拉尔斯曼山的巴拉蒂研究站废水处理厂的性能进行了 2015 年至 2022 年的调查。巴拉蒂站的饮用水厂、黑水厂和灰水厂。使用便携式探针测量废水的 pH 值和 EC，使用分光光度法测量氨，使用封闭回流消解法测量 COD。 2015 年至 2022 年出水的 pH、EC、NH-N 和 COD 的月度数据显示，除特定时间范围内的少数参数外，其值均在允许范围内。据观察，黑水、灰水和饮用水的 pH 值在 6.5 至 9.1 之间变化。灰水和黑水均表现出电导率下降的趋势，表明离子含量下降。黑水氨氮浓度和COD呈上升趋势，表明有机物污染程度较高，灰水COD呈下降趋势，表明有机物含量降低。该研究还调查了废水和灰水中的 NH-N 浓度与 COD 水平之间的相关性，并将这些水平与标准值进行比较，以评估废水质量。这些数据将提供基线值来评估废水系统在处理污染物时的任何故障。与巴拉蒂站的污水相比，其他南极站的污水数据显示出较高的价值。这种变化很大程度上取决于监测站的规模、用水量以及夏季和冬季探险队员的数量。