Considering the diversity and the unexplored potential of regional aquatic flora, this study aimed to identify and analyze the potential of native aquatic macrophytes to reduce the organic matter of dairy wastewater (DW) using experimental constructed wetlands. The dairy wastewater (DW) had an average chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 7414.63 mg/L and then was diluted to 3133.16 mg/L (D1) and to 2506.53 mg/L (D2). Total solids, COD, temperature, and pH analyses were performed, and the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) was estimated from the COD values. The best performance in the reduction of the organic matter was observed for Polygonum sp. (87.5% COD and 79.6% BOD) and Eichhornia paniculata (90% COD and 83.7% BOD) at dilution D1, on the 8th day of the experiment. However, the highest total solids removal was observed for Polygonum sp. (32.2%), on the 4th day, at dilution D2. The total solid (TS) concentration has also increased starting from the 8th day of the experiment was observed which may have been due to the development of mosquito larvae and their mechanical removal by sieving, thus changing the steady state of the experimental systems. The macrophytes Polygonum sp. and E. paniculata were considered suitable for the reduction of organic matter of DW using constructed wetlands.
Keywords: constructed wetlands; dairy industry; phytoremediation.