Pretreatment Standards For Waste Water

The General Pretreatment Regulations establish responsibilities of federal, state and local government, industry and the public to implement Pretreatment Standards to control pollutants from the industrial users which may pass through or interfere with publicly-owned treatment works treatment processes or which may contaminate sewage sludge.

POTWs collect wastewater from homes, commercial buildings and industrial facilities and transport it via a series of pipes, known as a collection system, to the treatment plant. Here, the POTW removes harmful organisms and other contaminants from the sewage so it can be discharged safely into the receiving stream. Certain industrial users who discharge waste water to POTW may be subject to pretreatment standards.

For more information, visit the U.S. EPA's Pretreatment Program Web site.