The Joanes River in Brazil flows for approximately 75 km from São Francisco do Conde to Buraquinho Beach in Lauro de Freitas, passing through several municipalities including Salvador and Camaçari. This river has several tributaries, including the Ipitanga, Camaçari and Uberaba rivers. It is an important water source, providing 40% of the water supply to Salvador, Simões Filho and Lauro de Freitas.

Seeking a solution, the local government of Bahia launched a bioremediation project in March 2020, to improve water quality in the Joanes River tributaries and other key areas. This is the 1st phase of the project implemented by the following steps:

Joanes Reservoir I and II
Size: 20,000,000 m2 – 168,000,000 m3
Flow: 24,000 liters/second

Project Scale:
5 Main contributors under treatment
7 Areas of EM application, strategically distributed:
Boneçu River, Jacarancanga River, tributaries and wastewater treatment plant outfalls, Muriqueira River, Camaçari River, Piaçabeiras River and Prainha tributaries.

Application of EM・1® – Method
– 7,600 liters of EM・1® per week
– 1 day of application using 2 vehicles
– 7 application areas
– Weekly application reports
– Monitoring analysis

EM Applications per river:
– Camaçari River: 2,000 L/week
– Piaçabeiras River: 500 L/week
– Prainha tributaries: 1,500 L/week
– Boneçu River: 1,000 L/week
– Jacarancanga River: 500 L/week
– Jacarancanga and tributaries and water treatment plant discharges: 100 L/week
– Muriqueira River: 2,000 L/week

Total Amount applied by September 2, 2020
– Total applied: 197,600 L

– Improvement in water quality (N, P and chlorophyll).
– Reduced odors and complaints.
– Improved turbidity and visual appearance.
– Recovery of biota, return of macro-fauna and flora, especially fish fry.

Graphs

JOANES RESERVOIR II DAM

CAMAÇARI RIVER AND PIAÇABEIRAS RIVER

MURIQUEIRA RIVER

Visual Aspect: Improved Water Quality
Camaçari River

Boneçu River

Jacarecanga River

For further information, please contact our partner at:
Ambiem Ltda.
Add:Rua Araponga, 537. Q2, L10. Loteamento Varandas Tropicais, Lauro de Freitas, Bahia, Brasil. CEP 42701-330.
Tel:+55 (71) 3289-3471
Email:ambiem@em-la.com
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