Implementation Research
Decentralized wastewater treatment, storage and reuse (WWT&R) technologies represent promising elements of a cycle-oriented management of water and nutrients in arid regions, both in suburban and in rural areas (sustainable system solution). For deriving the necessary design criteria for a full-scale implementation of such technologies, we establish pilot systems for evaluating the technical components of each process unit. The suggested solutions will be comparatively evaluated not only by technological criteria but also by analysing the economic and social viability. In addition, decentralized solutions have the advantage of being highly flexible and can be easily adapted to changing conditions. Achieving a comprehensive “overall view” related to WWT&R management requires concepts for integrative evaluation that take management and decision-making structures into account.
Our research strategy includes joint efforts by natural scientists, engineers and social scientists towards the development of sustainable system solutions for the mobilisation of additional water at local level.
One prominent example is our recent activity in Jordan and Palestine within the IWRM-SMART-project. To date most of the wastewater reused in Jordan is treated centrally in a treatment plant close to Amman and transferred to the Jordan Valley for irrigation. However, due to Jordan’s topography, centralised treatment is unlikely to be cost-efficient for remote villages.
So far, decentralised WWT&R is an underexplored opportunity in Jordan. However, in 2009 the Jordan government included the development of the decentralized sector in the “Jordan Water Strategy 2009-2022”. Our research activities contribute to this Jordan effort by evaluating and demonstrating selected technologies for decentralized WWT&R and investigating the conditions for a successful implementation of such decentralized solutions. This include technical and economic analyses and the development of operational and financing models.
Contact
Dr. Manfred van Afferden / Dr. Roland Müller
Tel.: 0341 235 1848 / 1275
Fax: 0341 235 1830