Ecobreves – MEXICO: New Water Treatment Method

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

MEXICO CITY, Feb 10 2003 (IPS) - – Scientists at the Autonomous Metropolitan University of Mexico are developing an innovative technique to treat wastewater from the local petro-chemical industry, which includes the use of carbon dioxide and an anaerobic reactor. Contaminated water is neutralized with carbon dioxide and then passed through a special oxygen-free reactor, where anaerobic microorganisms act to clean the water, say the scientists.

The system proved 90-percent effective in experiments, but it has yet to be tested using massive volumes of water. Mexico's state-run oil company, PEMEX, produces nearly 15,000 cubic meters of highly contaminated water each day.

The PEMEX refinery Miguel Hidalgo, in the southern state of Hidalgo, will try out the new technique later this year.