ENERGY AND SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT OF MUNICIPAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT UNDER CIRCULAR ECONOMY PARADIGM

Municipal wastewater treatment plants (MWWTPs) are essential infrastructures in any urban context, but they may be considered as a potential source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and should be coherent with European Union (EU) policy on energy efficiency. This study presents a sustainability evaluation of four Italian and Romanian MWWTPs in terms of energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions using Energy Performance and Carbon Emissions Assessment and Monitoring (ECAM) tool software. The obtained results indicated that biogas recovery improved energy performances, while the largest contributions in terms of GHG emissions were in all cases caused by energy consumption and methane produced during wastewater treatment. The Romanian plants exhibited higher GHG emissions, compared to the Italian plants, mainly because of the different values of national conversion factors for grid electricity (0.41 kg CO2/kWh for Italy and 1.07 kg CO2/kWh for Romania). Two scenarios aimed at enhancing the overall sustainability were hypothesized, based on increasing the serviced population or energy efficiency, achieving significant improvements. A sustainability assessment of MWWTPs should be adopted as a useful tool to help water utilities to introduce low-energy, low-carbon management practices as well as being useful for policy recommendations.

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Šedá vodní stopa jako ukazatel udržitelného vypouštění odpadních vod – případová studie Povodí Ohře

Entecho ◽

10.35933/entecho.2019.12.001 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 12-18 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Libor Ansorge ◽

Lada Stejskalová ◽

Jiří Dlabal ◽

Jiří Kučera

Keyword(s):

Wastewater Treatment ◽

Municipal Wastewater ◽

Sustainability Assessment ◽

Water Footprint ◽

Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽

Ammonia Nitrogen ◽

Municipal Wastewater Treatment ◽

Grey Water ◽

Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽

Assimilation Capacity

Cíle udržitelného rozvoje OSN požadují mimo jiné i zlepšit kvalitu vody snížením jejího znečišťování, zamezením vyhazování odpadů do vody a minimalizací vypouštění nebezpečných chemických látek do vody. Jedním z nástrojů, který lze využít pro posouzení udržitelnosti vypouštění znečištění do vod je vodní stopa. V článku je popsána analýza šedé vodní stopy velkých komunálních čistíren v povodí Ohře. Pro analýzu byly vybrány komunální čistírny odpadních vod uvedené státním podnikem Povodí Ohře ve zprávách vodohospodářské bilance. Byla stanovena asimilační kapacita toku pro jednotlivé znečišťující látky hlášené provozovateli čistíren odpadních vod pro účely vodohospodářské bilance, spočtena šedá vodní stopa látek vstupujících na čistírnu odpadních vod (produkované znečištění) a vypouštěných do recipientů v odpadní vodě. Posouzení udržitelnosti bylo provedeno k dlouhodobému průměrnému průtoku recipientem. Analýza ukázala, že asimilační kapacita vodních toků je nejvíce vytěžována vypouštěním celkového fosforu a amoniakálního dusíku. Zároveň z analýzy vyplynulo, že čistírny odpadních vod, až na výjimky, čistí vodu dostatečně a asimilační kapacita vodního toku nebývá vyčerpána. ----------- The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, call, among others, for the improvement of water quality by reducing water pollution, avoiding waste disposal in water and minimizing hazardous chemicals discharge into water. One of the tools that can be used for the sustainability assessment of pollution discharge into water is the water footprint. The paper calculates the grey water footprint of large municipal wastewater treatment plants in the Ohře River basin, located in the Czech Republic. Municipal wastewater treatment plants listed by the state-owned enterprise Povodí Ohře in Water Balance Management reports were selected for the analysis. The receiving body assimilation capacity for individual pollutants was determined and the grey water footprint at the inlet and outlet of the WWTP was calculated. Subsequently, the sustainability assessment of the WWTP discharges were carried out and related to the long-term average flow rates in the receiving water body. The analyses showed that the assimilation capacity of the watercourse is mostly utilized by the discharge of total phosphorus and ammonia nitrogen. The analysis also showed that (with some exceptions) the wastewater treatment plants treat water sufficiently and the assimilation capacity of the watercourse is not exhausted.

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The circular economy concept in the municipal wastewater and sewage sludge management – site-specific cases from Poland

10.21203/rs.3.rs-190616/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Małgorzata Jadwiga Kacprzak

Keyword(s):

Wastewater Treatment ◽

Sewage Sludge ◽

Circular Economy ◽

Municipal Wastewater ◽

Land Reclamation ◽

Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽

Waste To Energy ◽

Mineral Fertilizers ◽

Municipal Wastewater Treatment ◽

Nitrogen And Phosphorus

Abstract Introduction of the circular economy package as a result of the necessity to protect natural resources has also forced a new approach for effective wastewater and biowaste treatment and management. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have become crucial elements of regional bioeconomy - mainly through energy (waste to energy) and matter (nutrients-energy-water) recovery as an element of sustainable development of a smart city. In Poland in 2019 operated 3278 municipal wastewater treatment plants. To achieve specific effluent goals for BOD, nitrogen and phosphorus, different adaptations and modifications have been made. Modernization of technological lines of wastewater treatment has led to a significant improvement in the quality of treated sewage, at the largest WWTPs in Warsaw, Cracow or Gdansk. Eleven WWTPs produce approx. 34% of the total volume of approx. 337 GWh of electricity from biogas in Poland. The potential of producing electricity from biogas in WWTPs in Poland can be estimated at approx. 700–850 GWh per year. According to the data of the Statistics Poland in 2019 in Poland approx. 25% of sewage sludge was used directly in agriculture and for land reclamation. Simultaneously more than 100 WWTPs produce compost at high quality. However only few produce organic/organic-mineral fertilizers, mainly with addition of calcium.

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The specificities of the circular economy (CE) in the municipal wastewater and sewage sludge sector—local circumstances in Poland

Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy ◽

10.1007/s10098-021-02178-w ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Malgorzata J. Kacprzak ◽

Iwona Kupich

Keyword(s):

Wastewater Treatment ◽

Sewage Sludge ◽

Circular Economy ◽

Municipal Wastewater ◽

Land Reclamation ◽

Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽

Waste To Energy ◽

Technology Selection ◽

Mineral Fertilizers ◽

Municipal Wastewater Treatment

AbstractWastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have become crucial elements of the regional bioeconomy—mainly through energy (waste to energy) and matter (nutrients–energy–water) recovery as an element of sustainable development of a smart city. In Poland, a decentralized system functioned with 3278 municipal wastewater treatment plants, and less than 80% of the population were connected to public urban wastewater treatment systems. The paper presents the technology selection and implementation of circular economy at WWTPs and the practical approach to challenge of energy-positive and environmentally friendly wastewater and sewage sludge sector. The modernization of technological lines of wastewater treatment has led to a significant improvement in the quality of treated sewage, at the largest WWTPs in Warsaw, Cracow, or Gdansk. Eleven WWTPs produce 34% of the total volume of approximately 337 GWh of electricity from biogas in Poland. The potential of producing electricity from biogas in WWTPs in Poland can be estimated at approximately 700–850 GWh per year. According to the data of the Statistics Poland in Poland, approximately 25% of sewage sludge was used directly in agriculture and for land reclamation. Simultaneously, more than 100 WWTPs produce compost at a high quality. However, only few produce organic/organic-mineral fertilizers, mainly with addition of calcium. Decentralization leads to different technologies used in wastewater treatment plants, and environmental, economic, and social conditions determine the direction of changes and introduction of a circular economy paradigm in the Polish wastewater sector. Graphic abstract

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