Meat Processing
Historically, slaughterhouses and packinghouses have performed water treatment with a combination of fine screening, sedimentation, coagulation and flocculation, trickling filters, and an activated sludge process. Unfortunately, the chemicals involved have usually been commodity driven—that is, dictated more by price than safety or effectiveness. Acidic and caustic substances such as polyaluminum chloride and ferric chloride have been the viable coagulants chosen for their low cost and the large process water flows. A changing regulatory environment, however, and aging POTW infrastructure have required managers to rethink how best to treat the wastewater leaving their facilities.
What are the wastewater challenges facing slaughterhouses and packinghouses?
An overabundance of nutrients passing through to POTW’s or directly discharged into a nearby water source can have a drastically negative effect on the POTW’s ability to treat the wastewater and protect the environment. Such nutrients spur the growth of algae and phytoplankton in the water in which they eventually reside. This, in turn, depletes the water’s oxygen. Depleted oxygen levels in water will diminish aquatic life and negatively impact local wastewater treatment initiatives. As communities search for solutions, they discover that they lack the capital or tax base necessary to improve infrastructure to handle the increased nutrients. Increasingly, the problem has been redirected back to the slaughter and packinghouses to solve on their own.
What are the benefits of working with MacDermid Envio Corporation to solve wastewater challenges facing meat processing industries?
At MacDermid Envio, we can create a solution that’s both compliant and cost-effective. We begin with an audit of your facility’s processes to observe your flow cycle and test water samples. We then create an individualized solution for your unique situation—one that uses the right technology for your challenges and budget.
Maintaining compliance is an important and sometimes complex responsibility. We want to ensure your new system will not only perform and last for years to come, but will be as worry-free as possible. The MacDermid Envio Performance Guarantee Program is a five-year renewable program intended to keep your system operating within prescribed specifications to meet the regulatory limits outlined in MacDermid Envio’s quotation.