Wastewater treatment in New Jersey is a bit different than in other states.
With stricter regulations for certain aspects of the treatment process, it's up to businesses in the area to both understand and implement compliant solutions to keep waterways clean and free of pollutants.
O&M Solutions is your go-to choice for water and wastewater management in the New Jersey area. Get in touch today to learn more about our services.
So, what does your business need to know about the New Jersey regulatory landscape? What makes the state so different when it comes to wastewater treatment?
Read on to learn more.
New Jersey's Wastewater Landscape: Understanding the Regulatory Framework
When it comes to wastewater treatment in New Jersey, you’ll find a comprehensive set of regulations and standards that help protect the Garden State’s precious natural resources.
These regulations are set and administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP).
NJDEP divides these regulations into two categories:
Pretreatment standards
Effluent release standards
While these regulations uphold local water quality standards within the state, they’re based on federal regulations like the Clean Water Act (CWA). It’s worth noting that the NJDEP standards are often stricter than those at a federal level — putting a heavier burden on businesses that want to treat their own wastewater.
Even so, NJDEP’s regulations are generally consistent with the CWA.
Some areas where NJDEP’s regulations differ from the CWA include:
NJDEP has stricter standards for stormwater runoff
NJDEP also has more stringent standards for nitrogen and phosphorus pollution
Administering and enforcing these standards is just part of the job. The NJDEP is also responsible for several other key aspects of wastewater management, including:
Providing licenses and permits
Monitoring wastewater facilities
Providing technical assistance to businesses and municipalities
Funding wastewater treatment projects
Wastewater management is just one part of the NJDEP. In reality, the organization is responsible for all kinds of important environmental protection efforts in the state.
Industrial Wastewater Challenges in New Jersey: An Industry-Specific Breakdown
Understanding the role the NJDEP plays in the state is essential to mastering wastewater treatment for your business.
To help you create a clearer picture of how your business might interact with the NJDEP and manage its own wastewater treatment processes, here is an industry-by-industry breakdown of wastewater challenges:
Pharmaceuticals—wastewater pollution from pharmaceutical manufacturing contains harmful pollutants like antibiotics, hormones, and other chemicals.
Manufacturing—from heavy metals to solvents and chemicals, manufacturing wastewater can have a huge impact on the environment and human health.
Food and beverage—whether it's food manufacturing or livestock rearing, problems from pollutants like grease and other organic compounds pose a threat to treatment.
For many New Jersey businesses, a one-size-fits-all approach to wastewater treatment just doesn't cut it.
For example, the needs of a pharmaceutical company will be vastly different from, say, a large educational campus. It’s up to treatment services to deliver custom approaches that help improve efficiency, compliance and reduce the overall environmental impact of wastewater treatment and effluent water release in the state.
Adapting to Wastewater Treatment Protocols in New Jersey
The wastewater treatment process in New Jersey is similar to that of other areas, even with the stricter NJDEP regulations.
While the wastewater treatment process itself is fairly complex and use-specific at times, here are the general steps a business might use to treat wastewater:
Primary treatment is the first step of the process. This usually means removing large particles and solids from wastewater.
Secondary treatment involves the use of sludge tanks to further remove biosolids and separate the oil, also known as the scum, from the wastewater.
Tertiary treatment is the third and final step and often uses physical, chemical, or biological processes to further remove pollutants.
That’s the wastewater treatment process in a nutshell. Treatment technicians move through these steps to treat wastewater and ensure it’s safe for release into public water bodies like lakes or rivers.
At this point, you may be wondering how NJDEP's stricter regulations affect this process.
For one, the treatment method may include further nutrient removal processes. This ensures effluent release meets the standards for phosphorus and nitrogen content.
This additional nutrient removal is critical to preventing eutrophication, which is the excessive growth of algae in waterways — which is exacerbated by heightened levels of phosphorus and nitrogen.
Choosing the Right Wastewater Treatment Partner in New Jersey
Now that you have a firm grasp of what wastewater treatment looks like in New Jersey, how can you partner with the right treatment service to satisfy all your business needs while staying up to date with regulations?
Here are a few things to look out for when you're trying to find a trusted wastewater treatment partner in New Jersey.
First, always be on the hunt for local companies with the right knowledge and experience.
Since New Jersey has quite a unique regulatory landscape, it’s essential that your business works with a company that understands these rules and has the experience to back up its actions.
Next, always review a business's track record.
Ask them questions like:
How long have you been operating in New Jersey?
What are some other businesses I can contact to learn more about your services?
How do you approach wastewater treatment for a business like mine?
These questions can help you weed out the bad choices and focus on the good ones.
Lastly, you’ll want to make sure the company you work with provides custom solutions and after-sales services.
Since wastewater treatment can be a complex process, it's critical that you work with a company that will put your needs first and provide support when technical problems arise.
O&M Solutions: Your Choice for Wastewater Treatment Services in New Jersey
Wastewater treatment in New Jersey is a bit different than in other states.
While it’s true that the CWA offers a general framework to follow, key regulatory areas make New Jersey a stricter environment for water treatment.
These additional and often stricter regulations provide extra protections for the state’s public water bodies and natural resources.
When it comes to providing robust wastewater treatment in New Jersey, O&M Solutions has the expertise and knowledge needed to help your business create the efficient and safe wastewater treatment processes to manage your waste stream and keep the environment protected.
Our goal is to provide both the public and private sectors with operations and management solutions for both water and wastewater treatment.
For more information on how O&M Solutions can help your business, get in touch with our team today.