Xylem Inc. has won a contract to develop and install a secondary wastewater treatment solution that will eliminate effluent odor problems and significantly improve the quality of wastewater in the town of Tolu on the Colombian Caribbean coast.
The Xylem solution is one of the first wastewater treatment systems using ultraviolet (UV) disinfection to be developed in Colombia. It is anticipated that the solution will boost the economy of the locality which is heavily dependent on tourism, benefitting its population of 30,000 people.
The Xylem solution will enable the plant to achieve effluent quality that far exceeds local regulatory standards* while at the same time delivering cost savings in relation to maintenance of approximately 11 percent annually. The improved quality of effluent will mean that wastewater can be reused for domestic, agricultural and tourism activities. In addition, the new solution will require an area of just 400 square meters compared to the traditional lagoons it will replace which had a footprint of 15,000 square meters. The resulting available land will be used for commercial purposes and to accommodate a water reservoir.
The Xylem Sanitaire ICEAS secondary wastewater treatment plant will consist of an aeration system, decanters, blowers, monitoring, controls and instrumentation. In addition, Xylem's Wedeco TAK UV disinfection system and Xylem's Flygt sludge pumps will be installed at the plant.
Eduardo Ghisays, Director, Consortium Aguas Del Golfo, the group responsible for developing the new plant said, As well as dramatically improving the region's wastewater quality this new system from Xylem will have a very positive knock-on effect on the local eco-system and the environment in the region as a whole. Tolu boasts one kilometer of beautiful coastline - the cleanliness of these beaches will be enhanced by this new system which we anticipate will boost tourism in the region.
Juan Contreras, projects manager for Xylem Colombia said, We are delighted to be partnering with the authorities in Tolu to develop this innovative solution that will enhance people's lives as well as providing a sustainable wastewater solution that will benefit the local environment.
The new wastewater treatment solution will be operational in November 2013.
* The Xylem Sanitaire ICEAS solution will achieve effluent quality of less than 10 milligrams per liter Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS). Local regulations require effluent quality of 50 milligrams per litre BOD and 22 milligrams per litre TSS.
