Biofilms in Policy: Wastewater
Water is an essential resource for all life on Earth. The average person in Britain uses 142 litres of water a day(1); equivalent to over 470 mugs of tea. In the UK, water is a devolved matter. Throughout Scotland and Northern Ireland, the water industry is publicly owned. Conversely, in England and Wales the sector is privatised, with the provision of water and wastewater being appointed to private companies in 1989(2). With wastewater management frequently making headlines due to environmental concerns and regulatory challenges, it’s crucial to focus on innovative solutions like biofilms to address these pressing issues.
Biofilms are communities of microorganisms like bacteria and fungi that represent the predominant lifestyle of microbial life on Earth(3). They are found almost anywhere on our planet, from soil to oceans and even the human body. Biofilms play a crucial role in cleaning our wastewater. In water treatment systems biofilms help to breakdown harmful waste. Once used, the biofilms can be recycled for further wastewater treatment(4) or repurposed for alternative industries such as agriculture(5).
There are some existing infrastructural issues that our wastewater systems experience in the UK. Climate change and the increased rainfall that it brings is placing ever greater pressure on the country’s Victorian sewage system, resulting in untreated wastewater being released into the environment via storm overflows(6). In 2023, there were over 464,000 sewage discharges into English waterways alone, which averages to 1,271 spills each day(7). This poses a significant threat to public and environmental health, with sewage spills being responsible for diseases such as hepatitis(8) and the degradation of ecosystems(9). Unfortunately, in many instances it is cheaper for water companies to pay fines for polluting waterways, rather than fixing the infrastructure responsible for such pollution. Despite handing out fines, regulators in the UK water sector have been scrutinised for their performance. While they have frameworks in place to ensure compliance and manage resources, there have been criticisms regarding their effectiveness in enforcement.
Wastewater treatment plants also produce greenhouse gases such as nitrous oxide which contribute to climate change. In 2018, the whole waste sector was responsible for 6% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions, with wastewater treatment being the second largest emitter from this sector after landfills(10).
Furthermore, treated wastewater can release phosphorus into our waterways(11). This promotes algal blooms and decreases oxygen availability for other species, hindering biodiversity(11). To achieve the Environment Act 2021’s ambitious target of an 80% reduction of phosphorus emissions from treated wastewater by 2038(11), we must maximise the efficiency of processes that we use in wastewater treatment plants.
Despite the importance of biofilms in wastewater treatment and the potential solutions they could provide to overcome the sectors challenges, awareness about these microbial communities is lacking. Experts within the biofilm field emphasise that gaps still exist between academic research and industry practices(12). Furthermore, there have been calls for greater efforts to be placed on educating the public, industry regulators and policymakers about biofilms, to promote interdisciplinary discussions and action(13).
The National Biofilms Innovation Centre (NBIC) is well placed to address many of these issues given its multidisciplinary approach. Through NBIC’s Proof of Concept awards, institutions such as the University of Edinburgh are working with industry partners to investigate how we can maximise our use of biofilms in wastewater treatment. For example, research is currently underway to discover how we can engineer biofilms to release less greenhouse gases from wastewater treatment plants.
Ultimately, to continue improving wastewater treatment in the UK, greater collaboration is required between the government, academics, charities, other non-governmental stakeholders and the private sector, especially as water is privatised in England and Wales.
To get involved in NBIC’s policy efforts please consider taking part in our Wastewater Policy Brief Consultation.
Should you need more information on the role of biofilms in wastewater treatment, please contact one of a few experts listed below.
If you are a biofilm researcher interested in having a profile linked to this blog, please feel free to contact us at nbic@biofilms.ac.uk.
Yongqiang Liu, University of Southampton
Y.Liu@soton.ac.uk or +44 (0)2380 592843
Yongqiang’s current research spans a wide array of topics, including the production of platform chemicals and materials, biological wastewater treatment, resource recovery, and membrane fouling control. Additionally, she focuses on anaerobic digestion for energy recovery from biomass and biowaste, as well as life cycle assessment (LCA) for evaluating environmental impacts.
If you want to work with us or learn more about our policy engagement and activities, please contact Ines Foidl, our Policy Engagement Officer.
References:
(1) Water UK. Vast majority of Brits have no idea how much water they use each day. 2020. Available at: https://www.water.org.uk/news-views-publications/news/vast-majority-brits-have-no-idea-how-much-water-they-use-each-day [Accessed 2024, November 15].
(2) Industry and Regulators Committee. The affluent and the effluent: cleaning up failures in water and sewerage regulation. London (UK). House of Lords. 2023. Available at: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/34458/documents/189872/default/
(3) Penesyan, A. Paulsen, IT. Kjelleberg, S. Gillings, MR. Three faces of biofilms: a microbial lifestyle, a nascent multicellular organism, and an incubator for diversity. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes. 2021. 7. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41522-021-00251-2
(4) Tran, HT. Lesage, G. Lin, C. Nguyen, TB. Bui, X-T. Nguyen, MK et al. Activated sludge processes and recent advances. In: Bui, X-T, Nguyen, P-D. Pandley, A. Nguyen, DD. Ngo, HH. Current Developments in Biotechnology and Bioengineering: Advances in Biological Wastewater Treatment Systems. Amsterdam: Elsevier. 2022. pp. 49-79. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-99874-1.00021-X
(5) Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs. Wastewater treatment in England: data for 2020. 2022. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/wastewater-treatment-in-england/wastewater-treatment-in-england-data-for-2020 [Accessed 2024, November 8].
(6) Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs. Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan. Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs. 2023. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6537e1c55e47a50014989910/Expanded_Storm_Overflows_Discharge_Reduction_Plan.pdf
(7) Surfers Against Sewerage. 2023 Sewerage Figures – Deep Dive. 2024. Available at: https://waterquality.sas.org.uk/2023-data-deep-dive/ [Accessed 2024, November 11].
(8) Surfers Against Sewerage. The Risks of Mixing with Sewerage. 2024. Available at: https://www.sas.org.uk/water-quality/water-quality-facts-and-figures/the-risks-of-mixing-with-sewage/ [Accessed 2024, November 15].
(9) Wear, SL. Acuña, V. McDonald, R. Font, C. Sewerage pollution, declining ecosystem health, and cross-sector collaboration. Biological Conservation. 2021. 255. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109010
(10) Climate Change Committee. The Sixth Carbon Budget – Waste. London (UK). Climate Change Committee. 2020. Available at: https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Sector-summary-Waste.pdf
(11) Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs. Plan for Water: our integrated plan for delivering clean and plentiful water. 2023. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/plan-for-water-our-integrated-plan-for-delivering-clean-and-plentiful-water/plan-for-water-our-integrated-plan-for-delivering-clean-and-plentiful-water [Accessed 2024, November 8].
(12) Highmore, CJ. Melaugh, G. Morris, RJ. Parker, J. Direito, SOL. Romero, M, et al. Translational challenges and opportunities in biofilm science: a BRIEF for the future. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes. 2022. 8. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41522-022-00327-7
(13) Coenye, T. Ahonen, M. Anderson, S. Cámara, M. Chundi, P. Fields, M, et al. Global challenges and microbial biofilms: Identification of priority questions in biofilm research, innovation and policy. Biofilm. 2024. 8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioflm.2024.100210