The collection of input data when designing a wastewater treatment plant is a necessary step to ensure the correct functioning of a water or wastewater treatment system. This helps engineers and designers gain a complete understanding of the composition of the wastewater or water to be treated, as well as the goals and objectives to be achieved in the treatment process.

Some of the most important inputs that are needed for the design of a wastewater treatment plant include the following:

• Characteristics of the water or wastewater, including the level of pollution, types of pollutants, concentrations of pollutants, etc.
• The volume of wastewater or water to be treated, as well as the quantitative and qualitative requirements for treated water.
• Location of source and treated water bodies to be used in the treatment process.
• Information about the features of the area, such as climatic conditions, geographical features, geology, hydrology, etc..
• The presence or absence of restrictions on the use of certain technologies, materials or cleaning methods

Failure to comply with the necessary input data can lead to problems during the design and operation of the treatment plant, such as low treatment efficiency, high operating costs, unreliability, malfunctions, etc.

One of the main problems with collecting baseline data is that often the data is not accurate or complete. Some sources may be outdated or incomplete, and the quality of data collection may be poor, which can lead to design errors and low efficiency of treatment plants. In addition, many factors, such as climate change and the presence of unexpected contaminants, can affect the cleaning process, so the original data may need to be regularly updated and adjusted.