This semester I’m taking a wastewater engineering unit. So, what the f*ck is wastewater? Wastewater is any sample of water that also contains sh*t that is not water. Wastewater in Western Australia is 99.97% water and 0.03% other sh*t, with most of it originating from domestic activities (Water Corporation, 2020). While 0.03% may seem like f*ck all but it really tells a story. People like to say: ‘you are what you eat’, but I think you can also be the wastewater you produce. From a sample we can determine what type soap or shampoo you like to use, how your general health is or even how lit you like to get on the weekends.
While we are still enduring this pandemic, I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you that there is another one on the horizon. It will be one of epic proportions and has been slowly simmering in the soup that is our own wastewater. It is time for us to rein in this big boy emerging constituent of concern; anti-microbial resistant pathogens. Anti-microbial resistance (AMR) can originate from medicinal compounds from domestic and clinical environments and end up in wastewater treatment plants which are ill-equipped to remove these compounds. They are instead released via the treatments plant’s effluent into the surface water.
Pathogens existing in the surface water will be exposed to these compounds and develop resistance mechanisms. Over time the resistance of the pathogens will outpace our ability to produce compounds capable of suppressing them. Consequently, we are stuck in an arms race with drug resistant pathogens. Make no mistake, this will be no cold war. We are fighting an enemy that doesn’t give a flying f*ck about mutually assured destruction.
Wastewater represents the ideal environment for AMR microorganisms and antibiotic resistant genes, allowing them to diffuse into animal or human hosts. Forget banning exotic wet markets halfway across the world, this sh*t is happening right here in our backyards and has the potential to end all life on Earth! Well more realistically, it inhibits our ability to prevent and treat infections, leading to prolonged illness, disability and death.
How do we stop this? I believe we must first deescalate the resistance mechanisms of these microorganisms by meeting sustainable development goal (SDG) 6: ensure availability & sustainable management of water & sanitation for all. According to the World Health Organisation, wastewater management has been underrepresented in most plans to combat AMR. This is because, most water treatment plants don’t have measures in place to treat AMR. But here in WA we have access to UV light, chlorine and ozone. These are proven successes in preventing the spread of antibiotic resistance by both deactivating the bacteria and damaging the resistance gene. These proven successes should be adopted by other countries to ensure we are doing the most to prevent the proliferation of AMR. A lesson learned from the coronavirus pandemic is that we are interconnected around the world more than ever today. Any virus from anywhere can change the world in 6 months, but now imagine it is resistant to any form of treatment we have.
As the saying goes, ‘prevention is better than cure’, it is also important that we consider methods of reducing the proliferation of AMR outside of wastewater treatment as well. A main driver of AMR transmission is human activities, like the displacement, overuse and misuse of antimicrobial drugs. This is particularly prevalent in low- and middle-income countries where there has been an increase is use of antibiotics in the last two decades. This coupled with factors such as lack of access to clean water, healthcare services and poor personal hygiene in these countries can lead the global transmission of AMR.
Being idle, while AMR spreads not only hinders our ability to meet SGD 6. It also hinders our ability to meet SDG 14 (life below water) & 15 (life on land). Marine, terrestrial life both also can be affected by AMR microorganisms.
Sources:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412018324887
https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal6
https://www.watercorporation.com.au/Our-water/Wastewater/Our-wastewater-system
https://eng.unimelb.edu.au/industry/water/events/contaminants-of-emerging-concern
https://www.washington.edu/news/2019/04/08/how-well-water-disinfecting-methods-damage-dna/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969719323629
The Sh*tty Little Blue Planet 