This study aims to improve knowledge on discharges of industrial effluents and their effects on receiving waters. It focuses on the analysis of physicochemical parameters (pH, temperature, COD, BOD5 and SS). Water samples were taken at three industries (cosmetics, pharmaceutical and brewing) in the city of Kinshasa. The results showed high levels for the parameters measured in the majority of the stations. In addition to pH and temperature, the contents of COD, BOD5 and SS of the effluent is much higher than the limit values set by WHO for industrial discharges to receiving waters. This could be major health risks for the population of the study area.

Among the waste treatment methods, anaerobic digestion is an attractive option for the degradation of fermentable household wastes into useful products such as biogas and high quality compost. Therefore, we conducted a comparative experimental study between the anaerobic digestion of fermentable household waste and anaerobic co-digestion of fermentable household waste and septic tank sludge. The experiment was conducted in two tanks of 80 liters. The first tank was filled only with 14 kg of biodegradable household waste and the second was filled with 14 kg of household waste mixed with 4.2 L fresh septic tank sludge in a ratio Volatile Suspended Solids (VSS) of septic tank sludge on Volatile Organic Matter of waste (=MOV) (VSS / MOV = 0.3). The evolution of the COD yields a balance on the degradation of organic matter and biogas production.
Anaerobic digestion and anaerobic co-digestion took place at a temperature of 25C° in two stages so that the first step in a 80 L tank, stops at acidogenesis and that the second step (methanogenesis) takes place in another 10 L digester. The results yield that 1.3Nm3 methane are produced from the anaerobic digestion of waste and 1.8 Nm3 methane are produced from co-digestion of waste and faecal sludge.

Assessing the parasite loads in rivers crossing cities is important for identifying the potential risks for humans and livestocks, and for selecting suitable risk reduction measures. The aim of this study was to determine parasite loads in four rivers (Bwindi, Kahwa, Tshula, and Wesha) crossing the city of Bukavu and flowing to the Lake Kivu. For each of the rivers data were collected at points located upstream of the lake embouchure during 2013-2014, and analysed through a modified Bailenger method. Our results showed that all the rivers were characterized by a rather high TDS content, an alkalinity above 7.7 and temperatures above 22°C, on average. Moreover, a diversity of parasites including nematodes, cestodes, protozoa and trematodes, was observed: Entamoeba coli, Ascaris sp., Hymenolepis diminuta, Taenia saginata, Giardia lamblia, Ankylostoma sp., Strongyloides stercoralis, Schistosoma mansoni, Entomoeba histolytica, Hymenolepis nana, and Trichuris trichura. Nematodes represented the most common parasites in Kahwa, Tshula and Wesha rivers (57% to 71% of species recorded), while cestodes were predominant in Bwindi river (77% of species recorded). Additionally, high parasite loads were observed during the rainy season. The results highlight the health risks to people who use water from these rivers for various needs (bathing, irrigation, dishes, and laundry). The use of the modified method of Bailenger would be of great interest for the characterization of urban waste waters and the promotion of public health because of the simplicity of its implementation and its low cost.