Towards sustainable waste water treatment with Dutch Nereda® technology

In the period 2003 to date, in the Netherlands an extensive research has been conducted for the development of a new breakthrough waste water technology. This Nereda^® technology is based upon aerobic granular sludge and distinguishes itself from traditional activated sludge systems by a significant lower energy and chemical consumption, much less space requirements and lower costs. The STOWA, University of Delft, DHV and six Dutch water boards participate in a Dutch Nereda^® development program. At five WWTPs in the Netherlands pilot research focused on granulation and nutrient removal and was supported by fundamental research. The achievements resulted in demonstration plants in South Africa and Portugal. The first full scale applications will be realized in the Netherlands. Currently world's first full scale plant at Epe, The Netherlands is under construction and will be started up in 2011. This article summarizes the results of the pilot scale investigations, executed in The Netherlands at five different municipal waste water treatment plants.