SWWA-KWR workshop on developments in the field of Contaminants of Emerging Concern
As a member of Watershare, the SWWA (Swedish Water and Waste Water Association) represents the Swedish water utilities and stimulates cooperation with research institutes and universities in Sweden to develop and share knowledge and experiences in the field of drinking water, wastewater and stormwater. On 16 October, representatives of the Swedish water sector visited KWR to exchange practical experiences and challenges for sustainable water supply and wastewater treatment in Sweden, and to discuss opportunities for collaboration with the Dutch water sector in a dedicated workshop.
The workshop focused on the topic of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). We discussed progress in the modelling of CECs in drinking water and wastewater treatment, developments in the risk assessment in the watercycle (building on QMRA for example), and experiences with new analytical tools to measure the presence of CECs in drinking water supply. The meeting clearly showed the interest of the participants in the options for measuring and modelling of CECs (including microplastics) during drinking water and wastewater treatment, experiences with early warning systems in the Netherlands, the reuse of water and recovery of valuable compounds from waste streams. Also, the resiliency approach, developed in Watershare, was recognised as an interesting topic for follow-up. Specifically, the participants considered the added value of combining the resiliency approach with the sustainability index that is currently applied in Sweden (by SWWA). The workshop was collectively seen as a stimulant for identifying project opportunities and setting up research collaborations.
Left to right: Dirk Vries (KWR), Kees Roest (KWR), Gerard van den Berg (KWR), Hans Bertil Wittgren (Sweden Water Research), Emile Cornelissen (KWR), Patrick Smeets (KWR), Johan Olanders (Ovanaker municipality), Annemieke Kolkman (KWR), Lena Blom (Gothenburg municiplity, Chalmers University), Daniel Hellström (Norrvatten), Alexander van Dorssen (KWR), Petra Viklund (Luleå water utility), Idsart Dijkstra (KWR)