Perspectives from a German Water Board Kirsten Adamczak, Emschergenossenschaft, noPILLS Lead Partner Water boards in North Rhine-Westphalia Emschergenossenschaft Lippeverband Lower Saxony Ruhrverband Wupperverband Münster Lineg Netherlands Niersverband Detmold Erftverband Aggerverband Dortmund Bergisch-Rheinischer Wasserverband Essen Dortmund Essen Wahnbachtalsperrenverband Hesse Wasserverband Eifel-Rur Arnsberg Düsseldorf NRW border Cologne Water boards Netherlands “Wasserwirtschaftsverbände” Belgium in North Rhine-Westphalia have a similar structure Rhine as in the NL Rhineland-Palatinate 2 Luxemburg What do we do as German Water Boards ? Stormwater management Water extraction Waste disposal River maintenance Flood protection Restoration Polder management Waste water treatment 3 Our catchment areas Streams Drainage pumping station Treatment plant Coesfeld COOPERATIVE AREA LV Pumping station Dülmen Borken Lüdinghausen Ahlen Haltern Dren- Dorsten steinfurt Wesel Werne Datteln Lippborg Marl Hamm LIPPE Berg- Reckling- Waltrop kamen Herten hausen Lünen Bönen Dinslaken Gelsen- Kamen Bottrop Ober- Castrop- Unna Soest kirchen Werl hausen Rauxel Dortmund Duisburg Essen Holzwickede Bochum Witten RHEIN Inhabitants Inhabitants / Area (km²) (mill.) km² COOPERATIVE AREA EG Lippeverband 3,280 1.4 427 Emschergenossenschaft 865 2.2 2,546 4 Our catchment areas Polder areas: 842 km² Coesfeld COOPERATIVE AREA LV Streams Dülmen Borken Lüdinghausen Ahlen Polder regions Haltern Dren- Dorsten steinfurt Wesel Werne Datteln Lippborg Marl Hamm LIPPE Berg- Reckling- Waltrop kamen Herten hausen Dinslaken Lünen Bönen Gelsen- Kamen Ober- Bottrop Castrop- Unna Soest kirchen Werl hausen Rauxel Dortmund Duisburg Essen Holzwickede Bochum Witten RHEIN Area: 4,145 km² Inhabitants COOPERATIVE AREA EG 3.6 mill. 5 After more than 150 years nature returns to the Emscher 6 Full-Scale Hospital Wastewater Treatment Plant Marienhospital Gelsenkirchen Full-scale Hospital waste water treatment plant Marienhospital Gelsenkirchen . 580 beds . 75,000 patients per year (stat. & amb.) . 60.000 m³ per year (water consumption) . 18,000 m² rain water collection area Treatment concept adapted from (advanced) municipal waste water treatment I F O OS MBR Ozone reactor Sand filter AC PAC reactor Sand filter Experiences and Challenges see www.no-pills.eu • Construction phase/collection of the waste water • Waste water composition and human behaviour • Emissions (noise, odour, sludge) • Safety and health issues • Long-term operation / contracts • Repair • Costs, costs, costs… MBR MHG: 2.1 kWh/m³ municipal MBRs: 0.9 kWh/m³ The Lippe catchment area – rural-industrial mixture 11 Waste water treatment plant Dülmen – 50.000 p.e. Project part “technical measures” • Powdered activated carbon step • Discharge into Tiberbach • Draining into a drinking water reservoir Project part “campaigning” • lasting 2 years • addressing all citizens • accompanied by socio-scientific investigations Case study Dülmen - Target groups and objectives - • 100 doctors and clinicians • 11 pharmacies • Raise of awareness • 3 hospitals • Change of prescription • Nursing homes and dispensing habits Medical and pharmaceutical professionals • Raise of awareness • Change of medicine • 19,900 households consumption, use and • 47,000 inhabitants disposal habits Community-wide • Raise of awareness • Disseminator / • 7,000 pupils and students catalysts for awareness raising on the issue inside and outside the school walls Schools Case study Dülmen - Board of supporters - Chairman of the Representative Representative City’s of the city Environment of GPs council Managing Committee Managing Representa- Director of Director of tive of sports Water Clinics clubs supply Representa- Representative company tive of Mayor of of pharmacists supervisory the City authority Managing Director of nursing homes CEO of Lippeverband see www.no-pills.eu Survey after the awareness raising activities - Evaluation of awareness campaigns - About 77% of the respondents had heard of the individual awareness campaigns; 71% of them took notice of at least one of the printed information materials; 20% of them actively participated in at least one of the campaigns The fraction of the respondents in Dülmen with knowledge about medicines residues in the aquatic environment increased by 19% 20% more respondents used the proper disposal way of leftover medicines and 6% less respondents used an improper disposal option in comparison to the situation before awareness campaigns About 34% of the respondents stated they had changed their own habit regarding the disposal of leftover medicines due to the awareness campaigns 16% of the interviewees claimed to have changed their own behaviour regarding medicines consumption due to the awareness campaigns in the Dülmen … and now ? §§§ For example CH: clear strategy & legislation: measures & technics & finances decided! Emschergenossenschaft & Germany: 16 states & 16 Lippeverband are technically strategies… North Rhine- and strategically prepared for Westphalian and Baden- whatever decision is passed but are not establishing expensive Württemberg solutions voluntarily. National actors Environment Ministries and regional are willing to “convince” operators wait operators of WWTPs to for decisions establish advanced steps and strategies on EU level. .