/ Town Hall
Wednesday 12th December 2018
THE SANTA PONÇA TREATMENT PLANT WILL BE THE MOST ADVANCED IN THE BALEARICS AND WILL PRODUCE 20,000 M3/DAY OF REGENERATED WATER FOR URBAN AND AGRICULTURAL USES
Calvià 2000 has already begun the works on the new tertiary equipment, within its 'Zero Waste' strategic objective
More than 5.3 million euros will be invested and a construction period of 14 months is foreseen
Calvià 2000 is developing an ambitious plan for the regeneration and reuse of water throughout the municipality to promote the use of reclaimed water to replace the use of water for human consumption in irrigation and urban uses. To this end, works have already begun for the construction of the tertiary treatment facilities at the Santa Ponça treatment plant, with which the municipality of Calvià will have the most advanced system of the Islands in terms of capacity and quality.
The importance of this initiative lies in the contribution of the municipal public company to the strategy of environmental sustainability and circular economy of the Town Hall, since, once the new facilities are underway, most of the municipal wastewater can be regenerated and used for urban uses (private gardens irrigation, sanitary devices discharge, irrigation of green urban areas, street cleaning) and agricultural uses, moving towards the strategic objective of Zero Waste.
At present, the Santa Ponça wastewater treatment plant is the largest of the four wastewater treatment plants in the municipality of Calvià. It has a potential secondary treatment or purification capacity of up to 40,000 m3 / day and generates a quality effluent adequate for its return to the natural environment.
However, at present, only the Bendinat treatment plant has a tertiary treatment system, in which approximately 1,000 m3 / day are regenerated, destined to irrigate the public green areas of great part of the municipality. This flow is insufficient for the growing demand for reclaimed water from green areas, both public and private, and new developments and hotels.
This and future demands may be covered when the new Santa Ponça tertiary treatment becomes operational, for which an investment of 5,326,205 euros and a construction period of 14 months has been planned, beginning in December. Aquambiente is the company awarded the construction and equipment of the facilities, with the technical assistance of CIOPU.
Irrigation of gardens and sanitary devices discharge
The new tertiary will have the capacity to produce 20,160 m3 / day of reclaimed water, expandable to up to 30,240 m3 / day once the demand is consolidated. This reclaimed water will be served with two differentiated quality levels: one part for agricultural uses (including the irrigation of golf courses, gardens and agricultural holdings) and another for all types of non-potable urban uses, such as the irrigation of private gardens and the discharge of sanitary devices. This last quality level will meet the strictest requirements, in order to ensure maximum health security in its daily use.
The ambition of Calvià Town Hall is, in the medium term, to reuse 100% of the treated water of the municipality. The new tertiary is a very important part of this plan, to which must be added a future investment to extend the reclaimed water distribution network and build reservoirs or regulation ponds, irrigation networks for landscaped areas, along with promotional actions and promotion of reuse amongst potential consumers, amongst other initiatives.
Key investment for Calvià
Mayor Alfonso Rodríguez Badal has ensured that this investment is key for a municipality like Calvià that has amongst its objectives the efficiency achievement of its natural resources to the maximum and minimise the impact of waste. In addition, he added, investment is important because in times of consumption increases, the incorporation into the network of this water that can go to urban and agricultural uses will allow savings and a capacity to decrease the need to incorporate potable water into the network.
President Francina Armengol, meanwhile, has highlighted the work of Calvià to enhance water reuse policies, and its commitment to environmental sustainability and circular economy. She has also put stress on the impulse given by the Government to hydraulic infrastructure investments and loyalty to municipalities, by dedicating the water canon exclusively to this type of infrastructures.
Finally, the Regional Minister for Environment, Agriculture and Fisheries, Vicenç Vidal, pointed out that the great virtue of this project that Calvià has bet on is that it marks two clear lines depending on the destination of the water, since it needs a differentiated treatment if it is for agricultural use or for urban use.
Click on the image to see the infographic
