Altogether PURE aims at annual reduction of at least 300-500 tons of eutrophying phosphorus load. This is done by supporting selected wastewater treatment plants to reach a phosphorus content of 0.5 mg/liter in outgoing wastewater.

The investment needs are not equal for all PURE partner water companies. Therefore, a technical study is condocted at Brest (Belarus), Kohtla-Järve (Estonia), Szczezin, Gdansk (Poland) and Jurmala (Latvia) wastewater treatment plants to establish the most cost-effective measure of phosphorus removal.

See the results on the technical audits.

Based on the results of PURE technical audits, investments are realized at Brest and Jurmala during the project. Riga Daugavgriva wastewater treatment plant is a pilot investor in PURE. The investment in Riga includes dosing equipment and flow meters for chemical phosphorus removal and centrifuge for better excess sludge management. These investment needs were identified already prior to PURE.


PURE presents and develops sustainable ways to handle the wastewater sludge. The best practices and new technologies in sustainable sludge handling are compiled and published as a guidebook. PURE also produces a publication on enhanced phosphorus removal.

The activities in technical audits, investments and sludge handling studies in PURE are coordinated by John Nurminen Foundation.


Links:

• Discharges and losses from point and diffuse sources to surface waters within the Baltic Sea catchment: HELCOM: Integrated thematic assessment of the effects of nutrient enrichment in the Baltic Sea (2009), p.72-73

• Scenarios to reduce the loading: HELCOM: Overview, Towards a Baltic Sea unaffected by eutrophication (2007)

• European Commission: Urban Waste Water Directive pages

• European environment agency: Urban waste water treatment assessment (2010)

• European Commission: 5th Commission Summary on the Implementation of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (2009)