SUWANU WORKSHOPS ON WATER REGENERATION IN SPAIN

The workshops on water regeneration in Almeria and Seville were organized in the frame of SuWaNu initiative and are the culmination of 30 months of project. For members of the SuWaNu network, it has been the opportunity to present the plans and strategies where they have been working over the past two years and a half. This event has count with the participation of the most relevant stakeholders in the field of water regeneration in Andalusia who shared their experience in a relaxed and engaging environment. Both Almeria and Seville workshops consisted of sessions of short oral communications and a field visit.

Attendees to workshop in Almeria, opened by the president of IFAPA, Jeronimo Perez Parra, could assess the opportunities presented by the water regeneration sector to mitigate water shortages. During the day case studies on different uses and technologies for reuse of treated urban waters were exposed. Technicians, researchers, representatives of the golf and the agricultural sectors and water engineering companies discussed the current situation in the sector, identified the obstacles they face and explained what the benefits are associated with water regeneration. On the other hand, the field visit to the Irrigation Community of Cuatro Vegas allowed attendees to check in situ that regeneration of water is a reality in many semiarid areas forced to find alternative water resources in the absence of water from conventional sources. The experiences reported showed the success of regeneration projects where there is a strong partnership between the public and private sectors, so that different actors work together towards a common goal: to improve efficiency in water management.

New paradigm in which the wastewater treatment focuses not only on ensuring the quality of the effluent to prevent environmental damages but also on increasing the provision of water for different uses

In the workshop in Seville there was again a broad representation of both public and private sector. The day began with a field visit to the WWTP La Ranillale which has a Regenerating Water Station (RWS) which allows its use for both irrigation of golf courses and recreational uses. The visit showed the problems arising from water shortages have led to a new paradigm in which the wastewater treatment focuses not only on ensuring the quality of the effluent to prevent environmental damages but also on increasing the provision of water for different uses. The potential of water reuse to improve the management of this resource was a crosscutting issue in all the explanations that followed. During the oral sessions after the field visit we analyzed the current legislation and proposed changes and strategies to facilitate further implementation of solutions based on water regeneration. We also had the opportunity to learn about examples of regeneration in other countries through the presentation of a case study that was conducted in the city of Braunschweig, Germany. The conferences session was closed by the Deputy Councilor of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development of Andalucia, Ricardo Dominguez, who expressed the support of the Government of Andalusia to advance toward the use of reclaimed water.