Enhanced treatment for groundwater containing contaminants from previous land use — hydrocarbons, heavy metals and dissolved organics removed to strict discharge limits.
The engineering behind this application — flow estimation, treatment-train sizing and discharge compliance.
Meet strict environmental discharge requirements for construction water.
Treatment for basement and foundation digs in high water tables.
Coalescing and API separators for hydrocarbon-laden water.
Brownfield and former-industrial sites carry a legacy of hydrocarbons, heavy metals, solvents and other contaminants that the dewatering scheme will mobilise. Discharging that water demands an enhanced, multi-barrier treatment train and close attention to consent limits. This page frames the application; the linked engineering guide covers contaminant characterisation, barrier selection and compliance.
Multi-Barrier Treatment for Difficult Water
Contaminated-ground water needs more than settlement. We combine solids removal with the right contaminant barriers — oil–water separation and activated carbon for hydrocarbons and organics, chemical precipitation or electrocoagulation for dissolved metals, and final filtration for polishing. Each train is built around the site’s specific contaminant profile and the discharge or reinjection limits, with monitoring that proves removal at every stage.
Oil–water separation and activated carbon strip free, dispersed and dissolved hydrocarbons.
Precipitation and electrocoagulation cut dissolved metals to microgram-per-litre limits.
GAC and advanced oxidation address solvents and emerging organic contaminants.
Stage-by-stage monitoring proves removal against strict discharge limits.
Why These Waters Need Enhanced Treatment
Contaminated-ground water is variable, often a mixture of pollutant classes, and held to limits far tighter than a simple solids consent. The treatment train has to be specific, robust and fully verifiable.
Hydrocarbons, metals and solvents can occur together, each needing its own barrier.
Discharge or reinjection limits are often at trace levels, demanding polishing barriers.
Mobilised contamination changes as dewatering progresses, so dosing must adapt.
A Multi-Barrier Treatment Train
Sampling defines the contaminant profile that drives barrier selection and pilot testing.
Screening, settlement and oil–water separation remove gross solids and free oil.
Stage monitoring and final sampling confirm compliance before discharge or reinjection.
Plant We Build Into These Trains
Coalescing and API-type separators remove free and dispersed oils ahead of biological or carbon polishing.
View EquipmentHydroxide and sulphide precipitation removes dissolved heavy metals to low microgram-per-litre limits.
View EquipmentSacrificial-electrode EC removes emulsified oils, metals and fine colloids without bulk chemical storage.
View EquipmentGAC adsorption captures hydrocarbons, solvents and emerging organic contaminants from groundwater.
View EquipmentMultimedia and pressure filters polish settled water down to low single-figure NTU for tight consents.
View EquipmentFilter presses and thickeners turn settled solids into a stackable cake for economical off-site disposal.
View EquipmentWhy Choose Reynolds & Bauhm
See how we estimate the flow, size the treatment train and prove the discharge for contaminated-site dewatering.
Explore Other Dewatering Solutions
Meet strict environmental discharge requirements for construction water.
ExploreTalk to our engineers about a system sized for your site, flow and discharge consent.
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