What action should you take if your measured F:M ratio is too HIGH?

When the measured Food-to-Microorganism (F:M) ratio is too high, it indicates that there is an excess of food (organic matter) relative to the amount of microorganisms present. This situation can lead to microbial imbalances and can result in poor treatment performance, such as the generation of excess sludge or inefficient nutrient removal.

To manage a high F:M ratio, decreasing the waste rate is an effective action. By reducing the waste rate, you are allowing more time for the existing microorganisms to utilize the available food. This helps to optimize the treatment process as it balances the ratio of food to microorganisms, allowing for improved microbial growth and activity. Additionally, this can lead to a more stable and effective biological treatment process, ensuring that the organisms have enough time to break down the organic materials efficiently.

In other potential choices, increasing aeration time, increasing influent flow, or decreasing tank volume would not address the core issue of having too much food available for the microorganisms. Instead, they could exacerbate the problem by further increasing the amount of food in relation to the microorganisms, potentially leading to further complications in the treatment process.