Without wastewater treatment plants or pumping stations (waste) water would flow into city centres or even possibly flood houses and apartments due to overflowing basins and toilets. Therefore, they belong to critical infrastructures that need a resilient energy supply.
In view of the current energy and climate crisis, municipalities must optimise their energy supply, especially for energy-intensive water management infrastructure (wastewater treatment plants, pumping stations).
At the same time, the areas used for this purpose (wastewater treatment plants, sewers, retention basins, dykes, pumping stations, lakes) offer untapped potential for the generation and use of renewable energies.
Nine partners from six countries – Insight Centre for Data Analytics, University of Galway being one of them – are working on the goal of improving the mix of renewable energy generation and use by tapping into the untapped potential of the water and wastewater sector in urban and rural areas.
Saeed Hamood Alsamhi is leading the project at the University of Galway, providing a comparative analysis of the legal frameworks for geographically and timely sub-balancing of power production and self-consumption in the water and wastewater sector. The analysis gives insight into disparities in North West Europe and makes recommendations on policy criteria.
Find out more at https://resnrjwater.nweurope.eu/