{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,4]],"date-time":"2026-05-04T11:38:17Z","timestamp":1777894697042,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,19]],"date-time":"2021-01-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1611014400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sustainability"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This study presents the results of random testing of selected on-site wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) constructed in Poland in Masovia Voivodship in the years 2011\u20132016. The vast majority of tested on-site WWTPs were compact (container) type treatment plants, based on low rate activated sludge (AS), sequencing batch reactors (SBR), or a hybrid (activated sludge supported with biological film, AS + BF) method. Compact type plans are becoming more and more popular in single households in Poland, due to the option of co-financing. According to certificates provided by producers and distributors, container on-site wastewater treatment plants are efficient in BOD5 removal, with the expected removal rate being over 80%. The aim of this study was (1) to analyze BOD5 in effluents sampled from randomly selected on-site WWTPs, (2) to evaluate predicted and real environmental effects of the implementation of on-site WWTPs in selected communes within Masovia Voivodship, and (3) to calculate unit environmental and economic effects of container on-site WWTPs in three different technologies. Results of this study show that in most cases, there is a gap between the declared and the real BOD5 removal efficiency. There is also a difference between the performance of different container type technologies. The lowest real environmental effect was obtained for AS technology, and the highest for the hybrid one. The predicted environmental effect has only been almost achieved in the case of hybrid systems. Based on net present value (NPV) benefits, technologies can be set up as follows: AS &gt; SBR &gt; AS + BF, making the AS method the most effective technology from the point of view of the economy.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/su13020982","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,21]],"date-time":"2021-01-21T00:53:41Z","timestamp":1611190421000},"page":"982","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":27,"title":["Assessment of the Efficiency, Environmental and Economic Effects of Compact Type On-Site Wastewater Treatment Plants\u2014Results from Random Testing"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1565-3501","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Agnieszka","family":"Karczmarczyk","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Environmental Development, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences\u2014SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159, 02\u2013776 Warsaw, Poland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Agnieszka","family":"Bus","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Environmental Development, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences\u2014SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159, 02\u2013776 Warsaw, Poland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9895-2741","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anna","family":"Bary\u0142a","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Environmental Development, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences\u2014SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159, 02\u2013776 Warsaw, Poland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"DWA Technical Committee KA-10, and DWA Working Group KA-10.2 (2017). Principles for the Use of Small Waste Water Treatment Plants, DWA German Association for Water, Waste Water and Waste e. V."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"23610","DOI":"10.1080\/19443994.2016.1140077","article-title":"Suspended and immobilized biomass in individual wastewater treatment systems SBR and SBBR","volume":"57","author":"Sowinska","year":"2016","journal-title":"Desalin. Water Treat."},{"key":"ref_3","first-page":"69","article-title":"New technologies of small domestic sewage volume treatment applied in Poland","volume":"3","author":"Krzanowski","year":"2007","journal-title":"Infrastruct. Ecol. Rural Areas"},{"key":"ref_4","first-page":"5","article-title":"Effectiveness of organic substance removal in household conventional activated sludge and hybrid treatment plants","volume":"34","author":"Krzanowski","year":"2008","journal-title":"Environ. Prot. Eng."},{"key":"ref_5","unstructured":"(2020, November 13). Local Data Bank, (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_6","unstructured":"Statistics Poland (2020, November 13). Communal Infrastructure in 2018, Available online: https:\/\/stat.gov.pl\/obszary-tematyczne\/infrastruktura-komunalna-nieruchomosci\/nieruchomosci-budynki-infrastruktura-komunalna\/infrastruktura-komunalna-w-2018-roku,10,2.html."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1965","DOI":"10.2166\/wst.2010.105","article-title":"Financial and economic feasibility of decentralized wastewater reuse systems in Beijing","volume":"61","author":"Liang","year":"2010","journal-title":"Water Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"407","DOI":"10.1007\/s10311-016-0551-9","article-title":"Low efficiency of sewage treatment plants due to unskilled operations in India","volume":"14","author":"Chatterjee","year":"2016","journal-title":"Environ. Chem. Lett."},{"key":"ref_9","unstructured":"(2020, November 13). Small Wastewater Treatment Systems for Up to 50 PT\u2014Part 3: Packaged and\/or Site Assembled Domestic Wastewater Treatment Plants. Available online: http:\/\/3w.xjlas.ac.cn\/UploadFiles\/pdf\/201011\/2010112311155.pdf."},{"key":"ref_10","unstructured":"(2019). Regulation of the Minister of Maritime Economy and Inland Waterways of July 15, 2019 on substances particularly harmful to the aquatic environment and the conditions to be met when discharging sewage into waters or soil, as well as when discharging rainwater or meltwater into waters or into water facilities. J. Laws, 1311. (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_11","unstructured":"(1991). Council Directive 91\/271\/EEC of 21 May 1991 Concerning Urban Waste-Water Treatment. Off. J. Eur. Union L, 40\u201352. Available online: https:\/\/eur-lex.europa.eu\/legal-content\/EN\/TXT\/?uri=CELEX%3A31991L0271."},{"key":"ref_12","unstructured":"(2020, November 13). Regional Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in Pozna\u0144 2016. Definition and Formula for Calculating Environmental Effects Related to Wastewater Management, (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"62","DOI":"10.1016\/j.watres.2013.10.066","article-title":"Methods for assessing biochemical oxygen demand (BOD): A review","volume":"49","author":"Jouanneau","year":"2014","journal-title":"Water Res."},{"key":"ref_14","unstructured":"DWA (2021, January 18). ATV-DVWK-A 198: Standardization and Derivation of Dimensioning Values for Wastewater Facilities. DWA Set of Rules 2003. (In German)."},{"key":"ref_15","unstructured":"(2020, November 13). GUS Statistical Information 2020. Household Budget Survey in 2019, Available online: https:\/\/stat.gov.pl\/en\/topics\/living-conditions\/living-conditions\/household-budget-survey-in-2019,2,14.html."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"31","DOI":"10.1515\/jwld-2017-0004","article-title":"Operating household wastewater treatment plants in the light of binding quality standards for wastewater discharged to water bodies or to soil","volume":"32","author":"Jawecki","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Water Land Dev."},{"key":"ref_17","first-page":"174","article-title":"Analiza efektywno\u015bci kosztowej indywidualnych system\u00f3w usuwania i oczyszczania \u015bciek\u00f3w","volume":"24","author":"Kundziewicz","year":"2011","journal-title":"Inz. Ekol."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"105","DOI":"10.1017\/aae.2014.4","article-title":"Effects of recent corn and energy prices on irrigation investment in the humid climate of Tennessee","volume":"47","author":"Boyer","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Agric. Appl. Econ."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Stec, A., and Zelenakova, M. (2019). An analysis of the effectiveness of two rainwater harvesting systems located in Central Eastern Europe. Water, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/w11030458"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"126579","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ufug.2019.126579","article-title":"Energy crops in urban parks as a promising alternative to traditional lawns\u2014Perceptions and a cost-benefit analysis","volume":"49","author":"Sikorska","year":"2020","journal-title":"Urban For. Urban Green."},{"key":"ref_21","unstructured":"SEJM (1999). Act of personal income tax. J. Laws, 350, 180. (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_22","unstructured":"National Bank of Poland (2020, December 19). Archive of Medium Courses. (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_23","first-page":"51","article-title":"Jednostkowe \u0142adunki zanieczyszcze\u0144 w \u015bciekach z wybranych wiejskich system\u00f3w kanalizacyjnych","volume":"2","author":"Bugajski","year":"2012","journal-title":"Gaz Woda i Technika Sanitarna"},{"key":"ref_24","unstructured":"Statistics Poland (2020, November 15). Communal Infrastructure in 2016, (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wa\u0142\u0119ga, A., Chmielowski, K., and M\u0142y\u0144ski, D. (2018). Influence of the hybrid sewage treatment plant\u2019s exploitation on its operation effectiveness in rural areas. Sustainability, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/su10082689"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"111","DOI":"10.1515\/sggw-2016-0009","article-title":"Hauled liquid waste as a pollutant of soils and waters in Poland","volume":"48","author":"Karczmarczyk","year":"2016","journal-title":"Ann. Wars. Univ. Life Sci. SGGW Land Reclam."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"60","DOI":"10.12912\/23920629\/62848","article-title":"Liquid waste from septic tanks as a source of microbiological pollution of groundwater","volume":"47","author":"Nowak","year":"2016","journal-title":"Inz. Ekol."},{"key":"ref_28","first-page":"77","article-title":"Sewage management in rural areas","volume":"Volume 166","author":"Gromiec","year":"2020","journal-title":"Assessment of Sewage and Sludge Management in Poland, Report"},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Capodaglio, A.G. (2017). Integrated, decentralized wastewater management for resource recovery in rural and peri-urban areas. Resources, 6.","DOI":"10.3390\/resources6020022"},{"key":"ref_30","unstructured":"Bicki, T.J., Brewn, R.S., Collins, M.E., Mansell, R.S., and Rothwell, D.F. (2020, November 15). Impact of On-site Sewage Disposal Systems on Surface and Ground Water Quality, Available online: http:\/\/www.floridahealth.gov\/environmental-health\/onsite-sewage\/research\/_documents\/research-reports\/_documents\/impact-ostds.pdf."},{"key":"ref_31","unstructured":"Ground Water Monitoring and Assessment Program (1999). Effects of Septic Systems on Ground Water Quality\u2014Baxter, Minnesota, Minnesota Pollution Control, Ground Water and Toxics Monitoring Unit, Environmental Monitoring and Analysis Section, Environmental Outcomes Division. Available online: https:\/\/www.pca.state.mn.us\/sites\/default\/files\/septic.pdf."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"206","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jenvman.2018.01.063","article-title":"Nutrient exports from watersheds with varying septic system densities in the North Carolina Piedmont","volume":"211","author":"Iverson","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Environ. Manag."},{"key":"ref_33","first-page":"74","article-title":"Evaluation of the impact of wastewater treatment plants with drainage system on the quality of groundwater in dug and deep wells","volume":"39","author":"Steszuk","year":"2014","journal-title":"Inz. Ekol."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"241","DOI":"10.1016\/j.watres.2016.05.046","article-title":"Evaluating contaminants of emerging concern as tracers of wastewater from septic systems","volume":"101","author":"James","year":"2016","journal-title":"Water Res."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"854","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2015.10.160","article-title":"Septic tank discharges as multi-pollutant hotspots in catchments","volume":"542","author":"Richards","year":"2016","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Hamisi, R., Renman, A., and Renman, G. (2019). Performance of an on-site wastewater treatment system using reactive filter media and a sequencing batch constructed wetland. Sustainability, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/su11113172"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"76","DOI":"10.1515\/aep-2015-0033","article-title":"Zastosowanie analizy wielokryterialnej do wyboru rozwi\u0105zania technologicznego przydomowej oczyszczalni \u015bciek\u00f3w zgodnego z ide\u0105 zr\u00f3wnowa\u017conego rozwoju [The use of multi-criteria analysis for selection of technology for a household WWTP compatible with sustainable development]","volume":"41","author":"Mucha","year":"2015","journal-title":"Arch. Environ. Prot."},{"key":"ref_38","first-page":"680","article-title":"Analiza koszt\u00f3w funkcjonowania przydomowych oczyszczalni \u015bciek\u00f3w","volume":"17","author":"Nowak","year":"2015","journal-title":"Ann. Set Environ. Prot."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"61","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jenvman.2011.07.010","article-title":"To centralise or to decentralise: An overview of the most recent trends in wastewater treatment management","volume":"94","author":"Libralato","year":"2012","journal-title":"J. Environ. Manag."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Drizo, A. (2019). Phosphorus Pollution Control\u2014Policies and Strategies, Wiley-Blackwell.","DOI":"10.1002\/9781118825518"},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1623","DOI":"10.3390\/su6031623","article-title":"Application of on-site wastewater treatment in ireland and perspectives on its sustainability","volume":"6","author":"Dubber","year":"2014","journal-title":"Sustainability"},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"22","DOI":"10.1186\/s13750-020-00205-9","article-title":"What evidence exists related to soil retention of phosphorus from on-site wastewater treatment systems in boreal and temperate climate zones? A systematic map protocol","volume":"9","author":"Envall","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Evid."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"137371","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2020.137371","article-title":"Kinetics of pollutants removal in vertical and horizontal flow constructed wetlands in temperate climate","volume":"718","author":"Gajewska","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"11446","DOI":"10.1007\/s11356-017-8779-x","article-title":"Treatment of municipal wastewater in full-scale on-site sand filter reduces BOD efficiently but does not reach requirements for nitrogen and phosphorus removal","volume":"24","author":"Laaksonen","year":"2017","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res."},{"key":"ref_45","unstructured":"Surgiel, P., and Kiniorski, W. (2020, November 15). The Concept of the Sewage System of the Kowala Commune, Based on Small Local Sewage Treatment Plants and the Possi-bility of Discharging Sewage to the Sewage System of the City of Radom. (In Polish)."},{"key":"ref_46","unstructured":"Decker, M., and Schul, J.-J. (1995). Evaluation Report. Performance of a Sample of Nine Sewage Treatment Plants in European Union Member Countries, Delft University Clean Technology Institute. Available online: https:\/\/www.eib.org\/attachments\/ev\/ev_sewage_en.pdf."},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"95","DOI":"10.2166\/ws.2004.0011","article-title":"Decentralized wastewater management: Challenges and opportunities for the twenty-first century","volume":"4","author":"Tchobanoglous","year":"2004","journal-title":"Water Supply"},{"key":"ref_48","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.2166\/wpt.2016.002","article-title":"Performance evaluation of package plant for treatment of single household domestic wastewater","volume":"11","author":"Sharma","year":"2016","journal-title":"Water Pract. Technol."}],"container-title":["Sustainability"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2071-1050\/13\/2\/982\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T05:12:49Z","timestamp":1760159569000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2071-1050\/13\/2\/982"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,19]]},"references-count":48,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,1]]}},"alternative-id":["su13020982"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/su13020982","relation":{},"ISSN":["2071-1050"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2071-1050","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,19]]}}}