Chongqing overcomes the problem of high-salt wastewater treatment in the mustard industry and realizes the recycling of salt resources

The Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment announced on the 11th that the key treatment technology for high-salt wastewater in the mustard industry independently developed by the Chongqing Academy of Ecological and Environmental Sciences has achieved phased results. The wastewater treatment demonstration project with this technology as the core was successfully completed and put into use at the Yuquan Mustard Company in Wanzhou District, finding a new path for the green transformation of Chongqing’s specialty mustard industry.

Mustard is a characteristic and advantageous agricultural product processing industry in Chongqing, forming a complete industrial chain in major production areas such as Wanzhou and Fuling. The wastewater produced during the pickling process of mustard has a high salt concentration and is difficult to treat. It has always been a prominent pain point that restricts the green development of the industry and affects the safety of the water environment in the basin. The cost of traditional treatment processes is high and the salt is difficult to recycle. The continued discharge of salty wastewater will put pressure on the water environment of the Yangtze River Basin, which is a long-term environmental protection problem faced by the industry.

The Yuquan Mustard Demonstration Project is designed to treat 48 tons of wastewater per day, with a salinity of greater than 8%. It can treat approximately 15,000 tons of high-salt mustard wastewater per year, reducing salt discharge by at least 1,200 tons per year, and reducing the impact of high-salt wastewater on the surrounding water environment from the source. At the same time, the moisture content of the crystallized salt produced by the demonstration project is controlled within 5%. After collection and storage, it can be reused in the pickling production of mustard mustard the following year, opening up the "waste salt-reuse" closed loop and realizing the recycling of salt resources. It not only saves the company's pickling raw material procurement costs, but also greatly reduces the burden of solid waste disposal, truly achieving a win-win situation of environmental and economic benefits.

According to the relevant person in charge of the Chongqing Institute of Ecological and Environmental Sciences, this set of technology is specifically adapted to the industry characteristics of large fluctuations in mustard wastewater quality and high salt content. The entire process route is mature and stable, replicable and can be promoted. It provides an integrated solution for the treatment of high-salt wastewater in Chongqing mustard processing enterprises. It will effectively promote the refined management of pollution in the mustard industry and help the green, low-carbon and sustainable development of the specialty food industry.

In the next step, Chongqing Institute of Ecological and Environmental Sciences will continue to provide follow-up services for demonstration projects, guide enterprises to improve normalized operation and maintenance management mechanisms, and dynamically optimize process parameters based on actual operation conditions to ensure long-term stable operation of facilities. At the same time, we systematically sorted out the engineering practice data, refined standardized technical solutions and operation and maintenance management experience, and gradually promoted and applied them in the mustard processing production areas of the city, empowering the high-quality development of characteristic industries with ecological and environmental technological innovation.