Whilst I welcome the progress towards permitting of water reuse, I don't think the current proposals go far enough in proscribing what is deemed "acceptable" for various water reuse applications. The proposals require the water reclamation plant operator to develop a Water Reuse Risk Management Plan, thereby accepting a degree of liability in the event of something going wrong. There is also a significant bureaucratic burden in preparing the WRRMP for each site proposing to reuse water. Faced with this, it will be simpler and often cheaper for operators to continue to discharge, rather than reuse the water. If the Commission is serious about encouraging water reuse and the circular economy, they and their experts should define what is deemed to be an appropriate standard of water quality for the various water reuse applications. This relieves the plant operators from taking on this liability and sets simple and unified standards for water reuse across the EU.
Published by Jeremy Biddle, Engineering Director at Bluewater Bio
Whilst I welcome the progress towards permitting of water reuse, I don't think the current proposals go far enough in proscribing what is deemed "acceptable" for various water reuse applications. The proposals require the water reclamation plant operator to develop a Water Reuse Risk Management Plan, thereby accepting a degree of liability in the event of something going wrong. There is also a significant bureaucratic burden in preparing the WRRMP for each site proposing to reuse water. Faced with this, it will be simpler and often cheaper for operators to continue to discharge, rather than reuse the water.
If the Commission is serious about encouraging water reuse and the circular economy, they and their experts should define what is deemed to be an appropriate standard of water quality for the various water reuse applications. This relieves the plant operators from taking on this liability and sets simple and unified standards for water reuse across the EU.