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NEWS: The Dutch roadmap for the wwtp of 2030

The Dutch Water sector has been a very innovative sector during the last decades. Innovations have been necessary in order to meet increasing effluent quality standards at affordable costs. This NEWs studyshows possibilities for resource approach instead of a waste approach. The term NEWs implies that thenew way of wastewater treatment is resource management for the three basic resources Nutrients, Energy and Water. The Dutch examples presented in this report, show that new treatment schemes based on aresource approach are already practiced.

The project was initiated by the Global Water Research Coalition (GWRC). The international network of water organisations gathered in the GWRC wanted a look at the future of our wastewater treatment facilities. Could it be useful to apply resource thinking to wastewater treatment? Next to this, the global impact of the economic crises, the energy crises and the climate changed, caused countries to rethink their energy use and emission of green house gases. In The Netherlands, the watersector has set limits to energy use and has proposed more large projects on energy efficiency of wastewater treatment facilities.

 In The Netherlands the watersector is divided in different organisations for drinking water (water supplycompanies), sewage systems (municipalities) and wastewater treatment (waterboards). Cooperation between these organisations is encouraged, because of cost efficiency purposes.
These three different drivers were taken as the starting point of this study. We believe that wastewater treatment will always be necessary, but the future is found in resource thinking. Good NEWs for the world: waste becomes a resource. The Dutch Water sector is setting steps towards 2030.