Tradeoffs In Water Quality Management

Abstract

This paper describes a diagram which can be used to assess easily some of the trade offs involved in water quality management decisions. The diagram incorporates wastewater treatment costs, effluent quality, receiving stream water quality and different critical streamflows. The diagram is used in the paper to address the economic effect of specifying a critical low flow, other than the seven‐day ten‐year low flow. Results show that for the case study chosen, significant cost savings could result without substantially reducing the water quality of the receiving stream.