Insights into greenhouse gas emissions from a wastewater treatment plant in vulnerable water areas of China

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are a significant anthropogenic source of greenhouse gas (GHG), but the quantitative assessment of GHG emissions from WWTPs in vulnerable water areas under stricter discharge limits remains unclear. Herein, depending on a case WWTP in southern China, we investigated the impacts of discharge standard improvement and key drivers of GHG emissions using daily operating data. We demonstrated that the stricter discharge limits increased the total GHG emission intensity by 18.2 %, with direct emissions increasing more than indirect GHG emissions. The GHG emissions were negatively correlated with water quantity, showing the scale effect, which became more pronounced after the discharge standard improvement. Increasing influent chemical oxygen demand and total nitrogen concentrations significantly drove the variations in GHG emissions, which were accelerated under stricter discharge limits. This study provides insights into the evaluation of GHG emission from WWTPs in vulnerable water areas and carbon-neutral wastewater management policies.