environment
Sewage Treatment
Trends in Malaysia
By Ir. Haniffa Hamid and Dr. Aminuddin Mohd Baki,
Indah Water Konsortium Sdn. Bhd.
M
alaysia's sewerage industry has evolved over the
last half a century. Prior to the country's
independence in 1957, there were no proper
sewerage systems and no need for a proper sewage
treatment one due to the low population densities and
very limited urbanised developments.
Sewage treatment was mainly by way of primitive
methods such as pit and bucket latrines, over-hanging
latrines and direct discharge to rivers and seas. The need
for proper sanitation arose when the country developed
and moved from agriculture to an industry-based
economy.
In the 1960s, sewage treatment systems in the form of
individual septic tanks (ISTs) and pour flush systems were
introduced. Small communal systems engaging mainly
primary treatment such as the communal septic tanks
(CSTs) and Imhoff tanks (ITs) started developing.
In the 1970s, the technology engaged expanded to
biological treatment processes in the form of oxidation
pond systems using natural means of treatment. In the
1980s, mechanised systems were introduced in Malaysia
and oxidation ponds were converted to aerated lagoon
systems.
The late 1980s and the 1990s saw the accelerated
development of fully mechanised systems in the form of
biological filters and activated sludge systems. The later
part of the 1990s saw efforts concentrated on the control
of mechanised systems which allowed for process
optimisation of new systems.
This evolution of treatment processes from primitive
to primary and then to secondary systems was mainly
due to technology development in the sewerage industry.
THE RIVER
Figure 2.1: Rural Sanitation Direct Discharges
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Series 3
The evolution also saw the move from non-mechanical
systems to a more mechanical and automated system.
New and improved equipment were also continuously
introduced due to technological advancements. With time
this increased the expectation on environmental standards
and the skill level in the design, construction and
operations of new sewerage works.
The Evolution of Sewage Treatment Technology
In early days of human civilisation, life was too harsh
to worry about sewerage systems. As the population was
very small, nature took care of the sanitation problems
but as civilisation progressed and the population increased,
the need for proper sanitation arose.
In Europe, the development of sewerage systems
followed the needs that arose as townships grew and
population rose. Its evolution started with direct discharge
to the streets during the Middle Ages where the streets
were the sewage disposal area. Outbreaks of bubonic
plague raised the concern for improved sanitation.
In the 19th century, development in sewerage systems
included the use of pour flush and sewers discharging to
the river. When the pollution level in the rivers worsen,
sewage farms were introduced to treat sewage and later
developed into proper sewage treatment plants.
During Malaysia's pre-independence period, the
development of sanitation facilities was very limited as
the need for sanitation was not critical. Figure 2.1 showed
the sanitation practices in the rural areas while Figure 2.2
looked at the sanitation practices in the towns. See the
early technologies used in Figures 2.3.
THE BEACH
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In the 1950s, towns started to develop and population
densities began to grow. There was increased need for
improvement in the sanitation sector. Technological
advancement at that time saw the primary systems using
the sedimentation processes. ISTs used this treatment
concept. See Figures 2.4 and 2.5.

Figure 2.2: Town Sanitation Night Soil Systems

Pour Flush

Figure 2.4: Individual Septic Tanks

Hanging Latrines

Pit Latrines

Bucket Latrines

Figure 2.3 Technologies in the early days in Malaya Figure 2.5: Individual Septic Tank Systems

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Figure 2.6: Typical Performance of

Individual Septic Tanks

This primary system could only provide basic primary ITs, another improved version of primary treatment
treatment via sedimentation and digestion. The expected system, were later introduced for the community sewerage
performance of such systems is shown in Figure 2.6. systems. See Figure 2.8. Here, BOD was reduced from 200-
In the towns, ISTs started to replace the primitive 400 mg/l to 50-175 mg/l as shown in Figure 2.9.
systems, thus reducing the direct pollution levels to the
environment. For example, BOD was reduced from 200-
400 mg/l to 150-200 mg/l as shown in Figure 2.6.
After Malaysia's independence in 1957, the need for
improved sanitation expanded to community based
sanitation as more towns were established. CSTs were
introduced to improve the community sewerage systems.
See Figure 2.7. In terms of performance, they were similar
to ISTs but the CSTs served a bigger population via a
series of pipes connecting a row of tanks.

Figure 2.9: Typical Performance of Imhoff Tanks

In the 1970s as Malaysia continued to develop and as

Figure 2.7: Communal Septic Tanks
its towns grew to become cities, the need to improve
environmental conditions arose and led to the enactment
of the Environmental Quality Act in 1974. Partial
secondary treatment systems such as oxidation ponds were
introduced. See Figure 2.10.

Figure 2.8: Imhoff Tanks Figure 2.10: Oxidation Ponds

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Figure 2.11: Typical Performance of Oxidation Ponds
Figure 2.12: Aerated Lagoons
Oxidation ponds were capable of providing partial
secondary treatment mainly in the form of biological
treatment. The treatment performance improved as BOD
could be reduced from 200-400 mg/l to 20-100 mg/l as
shown in Figure 2.11.
In the late 1970s, aerated lagoons were introduced to
serve a larger population within a limited land area
reserved for oxidation ponds. This was done by introducing
aerators to the systems. This technological advancement
allowed for enhancement of oxidation ponds capacities
up to more than five times the original capacities. See
Figure 2.12.
The needs for improvement in the sewerage systems
became more prevalent in 1980s when the Environmental
Quality Regulations in 1979 were enacted. Technological
advancements included the introduction of full secondary
treatment via mechanised sewage treatment plants.
There are various types of mechanised sewage
treatment plants ranging from the conventional
activated sludge, extended aeration, rotating biological
contactors and trickling filters. Figure 2.13 showed an
example of an extended aeration activated sludge
system.
Mechanised sewage treatment plants capable of
providing full secondary treatment were more superior
than the other systems discussed earlier. Figure 2.14
illustrated typical unit processes of mechanised sewage
treatment plants.
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In the 1990s, improvement in pumps technology
allowed for more efficient pumps being introduced into
the sewerage industry. Improvements were made in the
impeller design, the materials used and the compactness
of the whole pump.
Various types of aerators such as aspirators,
submersible aerators and various improvements in their
design were also introduced over the years to allow for
more efficient oxygen transfers.
The technological development also included
improvement of existing systems such as the use of PLC
and SCADA in 1990s. Technological advancement in
computer technology and microelectronics allowed for
enhancement and optimisation of sewage treatment
systems. For example, the use of PLC allowed for better
control of the sequencing batch reactors processes or
intermittent decanted extended aeration (IDEA) systems.
Progress in Sludge Management
All existing treatment methods mentioned earlier were
capable of producing massive quantities of sludge. Prior
to the privatisation of sewerage services, there were no
proper programmes to handle, treat and dispose sludge
safely back to the environment. Sludge management was
neglected in Malaysia. It was assumed that sludge
management would be provided by others but it never
materialised. See Figure 2.17.
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Figure 2.13: Mechanised
Sewage Treatment Plant

Figure 2.14: Typical Mechanised Plants Performance

Figure 2.15: Examples of Equipment Used in

Sewerage Systems
Figure 2.16: IDEA Systems

Grease Anoxic Aeration Treated

Coarse Clarifier
Grit Trap Tank Tank Effluent
Screen

Fine
Raw Influent Screen

Pump Sump

RAS

Screening Scum
Grit
WAS

Sludge Treatment - BY OTHERS

- which never materialised

Disposals

Figure 2.17 illustrates this assumption that sludge management would be provided by others.

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Figure 2.18: Typical Sewage Treatment Systems with Sludge Neglected

Figure 2.19: Progress Improvements of Sludge Management

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Figure 2.20: Sewage Treatment Trends in Malaysia
Currently, there are about 7,500 public sewage
treatment plants which generate sludge as by-products
of the sewage treatment. There are over one million
ISTs which also generate sludge. The national
sewerage concessionaire is responsible to provide
desludging services at a frequency of once every two
years. Figure 2.18 demonstrated the extent of the
existing sludge treatment, collection and disposal
needs for Malaysia.
Figure 2.19 showed the technological evolution in
terms of sludge treatment in Malaysia. The progress
included trenching systems, sludge lagoons and sludge
drying beds. This was followed by changes to the
mechanised dewatering such as filter presses,
centrifuges and belt presses to complete centralised
sludge treatment facilities which consist of mechanised
thickening followed by stabilisation by anaerobic
digestions to mechanised dewatering, thermal drying
and incinerations.
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An Overview
In Malaysia, the sewerage technology has evolved from
pre-independence era of no treatment to the primary
treatment by individual septic tanks in the 1950s. This
improved the level of sanitation by providing partial
treatment of sewage. In the 1960s, the introduction of
CSTs and ITs further improved the effluent quality while
the 1970s saw the introduction of partial secondary
systems such as oxidation ponds which can produce better
effluent quality.
Fully mechanised systems were introduced in the 1980s
which provided full secondary treatment that can meet the
Department of Environment's effluent standards consistently.
The above figure demonstrates the technology
developments of sewage treatment over the years. An
interesting fact is that with advancement in treatment
technology, the user of mechanical and electrical
equipment shows a steep increasing trend. BEM