As the EU prepares to ratify its revised Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive in 2024, Alfa Laval is providing solutions to meet the new standards. The company’s latest installation in Norway will showcase its membrane technology, enabling compliance with the updated directive. Here are three key takeaways:

• With the revised directive wastewater operators will be obliged to recover nutrients from wastewater, adapt new standards for micropollutants and monitoring requirements for microplastics.
• The installation in Norway will illustrate Alfa Laval’s membrane separation technology’s ability to improve water quality and remove harmful pollutants such as microplastics, pharmaceutical residues and “forever chemicals” known as PFAS.
• The revised directive will change the demands and standards for wastewater treatment across the EU, making solutions like Alfa Laval’s more important than ever.

“The strengthened standards will increase the demand for new treatment techniques and technologies for handling these harmful micropollutants,” says Nish Patel, President of the Food & Water Division at Alfa Laval and continues; “Our membrane separation technology improves water quality and meet the new requirements. Our solutions are also energy-efficient, thereby contributing to the EU objective for the sector to reach energy neutrality.”

The Sarpsborg plant, which will become operational in 2027, will be a state-of-the-art energy-neutral facility. It will ensure clean water for the inhabitants around the Oslo Fjord by cleaning municipal wastewater and removing harmful micro-pollutants before they reach the fjord.