ABSTRACT
Uncontrolled wastewater discharge into surface water bodies and the resulting pollution made it clear that certain rules and guidelines are required for wastewater disposal. These effluent discharge criteria would outline the contaminant concentrations that would be permitted for release under the law. In order to meet the discharge regulations, treatment systems should be appropriately designed. The passing of laws also made it possible to take legal action against municipalities that did not adhere to the discharge requirements. Nowadays, rules and regulations from all around the world demand that wastewater be properly treated before being discharged. In order to implement these rules, acceptable concentration criteria have been created. In line with the ongoing discovery of new substances in wastewater streams, these restrictions continue to change. The relevant laws and requirements for wastewater discharge from various nations worldwide are provided in the following sections. The chapter also provides the allowable concentration of different pollutants in reclaimed water for their reuse for different purposes. Furthermore, guidelines regarding sludge, which is a residual of a sewage treatment plant, disposal have also been addressed in this chapter.
