Wastewater is the spent or used water from homes, communities, farms and businesses. Wastewater includes both domestic sewage and industrial waste from manufacturing sources. Metals, organic pollutants, sediment, bacteria and viruses may all be found in wastewater. ADEQ regulates the discharge and treatment of wastewater through permits since untreated wastewater can cause serious harm to the environment and threaten human life. These permits establish specific discharge limits, monitoring and reporting requirements and may also require these facilities to undertake special measures to protect the environment from harmful pollutants.