Primary treatment of wastewater targets the removal of what?

Study for the PE Environmental Qualitative Exam. Practice with flashcards and multiple choice questions, each question has hints and explanations. Get ready for your exam!

Multiple Choice

Primary treatment of wastewater targets the removal of what?

Explanation:
Primary treatment uses gravity to let solids settle out in a settling tank, so its main goal is removing suspended solids. By allowing solid particles to settle to the bottom as sludge and skimming off floatables, the process greatly reduces turbidity and the portion of organic load carried by solids. Dissolved pollutants, pathogens, nutrients like phosphates, and most priority pollutants mostly remain in the water and require downstream secondary or tertiary treatment to remove. So the best fit is suspended solids—the stage is designed to physically separate these particulates from the wastewater.

Primary treatment uses gravity to let solids settle out in a settling tank, so its main goal is removing suspended solids. By allowing solid particles to settle to the bottom as sludge and skimming off floatables, the process greatly reduces turbidity and the portion of organic load carried by solids. Dissolved pollutants, pathogens, nutrients like phosphates, and most priority pollutants mostly remain in the water and require downstream secondary or tertiary treatment to remove. So the best fit is suspended solids—the stage is designed to physically separate these particulates from the wastewater.

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