A Comparative Analysis of Rural Domestic Wastewater Discharge Standards in the Yangtze River Delta Region, China

Abstract

With the deepening of comprehensive improvement of rural living environments in China, various regions have issued rural domestic wastewater discharge standards based on their economic foundations, management levels, and characteristics of rural wastewater discharge. The Yangtze River Delta region, in particular, has been at the forefront of exploring these standards nationwide. By analyzing the local standards for rural domestic wastewater discharge in Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui provinces within the Yangtze River Delta region, along with the "Discharge standard of pollutants for municipal wastewater treatment plant" and the "Standard for irrigation water quality", it was found that the standards in each region primarily consider the classification based on the water environmental grade of the receiving water body. The pollutant concentration control requirements are generally consistent with the pollutant concentration limits for urban wastewater treatment plant discharge, but the total nitrogen and total phosphorus limits are more lenient than those for urban wastewater treatment plants. This paper can guide the transformation of rural domestic wastewater discharge from high standards to resource utilization, and provide references for the selection of wastewater treatment technologies, models, and governance strategies in the Yangtze River Delta region.