QualiSûre

Improve the protection and preservation of nature and biodiversity, strengthen green infrastructure, particularly in urban areas, and reduce all forms of pollution.

The project at a glance

Start date:

01 Feb 2024
Duration in months:

36
Funding:

Interreg Grande Région
Principal Investigator(s):

Silvia VENDITTI

About

Within the framework of two Interreg GR projects (Emisûre and CoMinGreat ), innovative technologies have already been developed to remove micro-pollutants from the effluent of wastewater treatment plants. It has been investigated at which wastewater treatment plants (on the Luxembourg side of the Sûre River as well as a catchment area in Saarland) these technologies could be most usefully applied, and an initial deployment strategy in the GR has been developed. Furthermore, a demonstration and information centre has been established. The planned QualiSûre project goes well beyond these approaches: hot-spots of emissions in the catchment area of the reservoir will be identified and sampled, existing structures will be operationally optimised, and at the identified hot spots – both at the existing wastewater treatment plants and at stormwater or combined sewer overflow structures – soil filters with locally produced special substrates will be installed on pilot scale and their effectiveness evaluated. In addition to micropollutants, other relevant parameters such as nutrients and bacteriological load will be considered. The results will be incorporated into a decision support tool that intelligently distributes wastewater loads within the catchment area and protects sensitive stretches of water. Finally, an action plan for transnational cooperation to keep the Sûre clean will be developed.

Organisation and Partners

Luxembourg

Intercommunal Syndicate of wastewater treatment in the north (SIDEN) – Project Coordinators
University of Luxembourg: Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine (FSTM), Department of Engineering
RTC4Water

Belgium