Characterisation of winery wastewater from continuous flow settling basins and waste stabilisation ponds over the course of 1 year: implications for biological wastewater treatment and land application

Wineries generate 0.2 to 4 L of wastewater per litre of wine produced. Many cellars make use of irrigation as a means of disposal, either directly or after storage. In order to consider the potential downstream impacts of storage/no storage, this study critically compared the seasonal organic and inorganic composition of fresh winery effluent with effluent that had been stored in waste stabilisation ponds. Ethanol and short chain volatile fatty acids were the main contributors to chemical oxygen demand (COD), with average concentrations of 2,086 and 882 mgCOD/L, respectively. Total phenolics were typically present in concentrations