EVALUATION OF POTENTIAL USE OF DOMESTIC TREATED EFFLUENTS FOR IRRIGATION IN AREAS SUBJECT TO CONFLICTS OVER WATER USE IN PARACATU RIVER BASIN

Abstract

The water crisis experienced in recent years in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, has corroborated the need of conscientious use of water, based on use-efficient technologies, capable of inducing reuse. Considering worldwide experiences, this study had the objective of analyzing the potential use of domestic sewage treated in irrigated agriculture in the Paracatu river basin, a region recognized as a water conflict area by the State Government. The methodology consisted of evaluating current uses and comparing the volume of raw water demand for irrigation to the volume generated in the sewage treatment plants in the Paracatu river basin; estimating the cost of effluent trucking down to the treatment plants; and comparing the established values paid for the use of raw water and the estimated cost of treated effluent transportation. Water demand for irrigation is approximately 182 x 10⁶ m³/year and the volume produced by the sewage treatment plants is 8,36 x 10⁶ m³/year, approximately 4,6% of the irrigation demand. The comparison between the established values paid for the use of raw water and the estimated cost of treated effluent transportation indicates a relationship between 12 e 2%.