The largest leachate plant in Europe
The largest leachate treatment plant in Europe is located at the installations of the Arigas municipal water station, in Bilbao Basque Country. It occupies a surface area of 3,575 square metres. The building is made up of two basic zones: the reservoirs and the treatment plant. The first is made up of three 400-cubic metre reservoirs the function of which is to regulate and homogenise the leachate flow entering the plant. In second place, the treatment plant holds the equipment that purifies the liquid. In this second zone an area of 280 square metres is given over to an Environmental Interpretative Centre. The treatment of leachates The main contamination in leachates is the high level of organic material, which eats up all the oxygen on being dumped. However, it does not contain highly toxic elements like heavy metals. Given that the characteristics of the leachate to be treated are those of waste with organic contamination and with a high degree of biodegradability, the most ideal process considered was one based on biological treatment. The treatment process is based on the biological disintegration of contaminant substances by means of a biological process with subsequent retention, through ultra-filtration, of generated particles. As a consequence the Artigas leachate plant will be able to reduce the contaminants in the waste by almost 1,400 kilograms per day and bring forward the date for compliance with the new European norm. Treatment process The treatment process consists of two equal lines, which work independently and as functions of flow and treatment. Each line is made up of a particle filter and two tanks where the wastewater is treated biologically. Finally, an ultra-filtration retains the non-dissolved particles greater than 0.02 micros diameter. The whole biological process works at a temperature of 37 ºC and a pressure of 3 bars.
Countries
Spain