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Removal of endocrine disrupters in the outlet water from wastewater treatment plants in combination with inactivation of pathogenic microorganism (Apop)
Start date: Dec 1, 2002, End date: Feb 1, 2007 PROJECT  FINISHED 

Background Research over the past few years has revealed that so-called endocrine disrupters are having adverse effects on the environment and humans. One effects which has been noted in Denmark is the feminisation of fish. In order to reduce the presence of these substances, for example, from wastewater treatment plant outlets, a cost efficient method is needed. Objectives The overall objective of the project was to create an internationally recognised design basis for a methodology that enabled the removal of endocrine disrupters (including oestrogen-like substances and AOX compounds) that at the same time also inactivated pathogenic micro-organisms. The project aimed to develop an economically sustainable method that would reduce the presence of endocrine disrupters to a harmless level. This would be demonstrated by the removal of the disrupters in the APOP plant, the treated outlet will potentially reduce the environmental and health risks of the receiving waters. The technical solution proposed would also have had to have been sustainable on a larger scale. For this purpose, the project was to have tested the effect of UV-light (of a range of 190 to 220 nm) on treated wastewater from the outlet of the Hoersholm Municipal treatment plant. A newly developed UVMH-lamp was to have been used for the tests. Beyond this, the different levels of oxidising agents (oxygen, hydrogen peroxide and ozone) was also to have been tested. Results The project constructed an APOP treatment plant next to the existing traditional wastewater treatment plant of the Hørsholm municipality. The process involved an oxidation and UV-radiation treatment of the water. The project reached the objectives as foreseen in the application. It demonstrated that it is indeed possible to reach an effluent level that meets the requirements of the EU Bathing Water Directive for bathing water and that removal of endocrine disrupters from wastewater to a non-hazardous level of estrogenic activity is also achievable. However, the technology applied is new and not well-established yet, which resulted in several trial-and-error phases in the implementation. The technology side of the project seems to work. However, the good results achieved are tied to the local (and often specific) conditions. The composition of the waste water may vary from locality to locality and thus the exact APOP method needs adjustment and modifications every time it is used. It is not merely the technology, but also the very policy area of the impact of endocrine disrupters and how to tackle this impact that is still very new and little-researched. The project is certainly innovative, makes a good demonstration example and has good transferability potential. Even though the project is a clear end-of-pipe exercise presenting no ultimate solution to the endocrine disrupter problem, it is difficult to foresee that a cleaner solution could be found in the near future at any essential rate. The incremental running expenses of the process are estimated at approximately €0.015 per m3 of treated water, which is 2-3% of the average traditional treatment costs. The technology is sophisticated and expensive, and requires very well organised treatment facilities that are run properly, which is the case in only a few regions of the EU. It should be noted that the solution is a high-class one, implementable solely under “reasonable” conditions, where traditional biological methods are already tuned-up to their highest level of performance. This means that currently, even in the EU, the project’s methodology is a rich-man's solution.

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