“In cooperation with the RPTU Kaiserslautern and the company Zahnen from the Eifel region, the Speyer waste management company has embarked on a particularly innovative path to better water protection made in Rhineland-Palatinate: Investments in modern wastewater treatment are important investments in the future in many respects. Efficient and effective wastewater treatment plants serve above all to protect our water and in many places make a valuable contribution to the energy transition and thus also to climate protection. With the pilot plant that has now been commissioned and the feasibility study for a fourth treatment stage at the local wastewater treatment plant, Entsorgungsbetriebe Speyer (EBS) is on the right path to examining the possibilities for reducing substance discharges into our waters, which result in particular from the production and use of pharmaceutical, industrial and cosmetic products,” said Climate Protection Minister Katrin Eder on February 23 in Speyer. There she handed over a notification for 200,000 euros. The state is using the funds to support the pilot operation at the Speyer sewage treatment plant, which is being scientifically monitored by the Rhineland-Palatinate Technical University of Kaiserslautern-Landau.
The pioneering model project was initiated through the mediation of Ecoliance Rheinland-Pfalz e.V.. The network for environmental technology now plays a central role in bringing together innovative players in Rhineland-Palatinate’s water management sector.
The project presents an innovative container solution for the elimination of trace substances from the wastewater of the Speyer sewage treatment plant. This process was developed by Zahnen Technik from Arzfeld, one of the most innovative companies in the Rhineland-Palatinate water industry. With around 160 employees, Zahnen Technik is committed to setting standards in drinking water supply and wastewater treatment.
The mobile cleaning technology from Zahnen Technik is characterized by its small footprint, as it requires neither foundations nor additional tanks. This makes it particularly suitable for small and medium-sized wastewater treatment plants, which are widespread in Rhineland-Palatinate. The pilot project in Speyer, which is being scientifically monitored, is intended to test the suitability of the process for improved wastewater treatment and offers significant economic benefits as well as ecological ones.
The relevance of this project is underlined against the backdrop of the forthcoming European Urban Wastewater Directive, which for the first time prescribes the 4th treatment stage for wastewater treatment plants according to size classes and is due to come into force before the summer break. The results from Speyer are therefore of particular importance for Rhineland-Palatinate, as they could also show how the objectives of the Water Framework Directive can be achieved efficiently.
We are delighted that the successful cooperation between Zahnen Technik GmbH and Stadtwerke Speyer GmbH, brokered by Ecoliance GreenTech Innovation GmbH, has enabled us to develop and implement innovative solutions to improve our water quality.
Both Stadtwerke Speyer GmbH and Zahnen Technik GmbH are long-standing members of the environmental technology network and have both been actively involved in Ecoliance for many years.