Construction of new sludge cake transfer facility in Garmerwolde gets off to a festive start
On Friday, May 24, construction began on a renovated sludge cake transfer station at the sewage treatment plant (STP) in Garmerwolde. The construction of a new sludge cake transfer facility stems from a desire for renewal. On the one hand, the water authority is striving water authority innovation, energy savings, and more efficient delivery and removal of sludge to partners who take care of the final processing of the sludge. On the other hand, these innovations result in less traffic, which is positive for all residents living near the Garmerwolde WWTP.
Official launch
The official kickoff was given by Noorderzijlvest Water Authority Beerda, Executive Director of Noorderzijlvest Water Authority .
During brief speeches by Julia Finkielsztajn, Director of water authority , Herman Beerda, and Jur Lommerts, Director at Jansen en Heuning, many words of praise were spoken.
In her speech, Director Finkielsztajn highlighted the partners with whom they are collaborating. There are many developments and innovations underway at Garmerwolde. Jansen en Heuning is proud to be the general contractor building the new sludge cake transfer facility, Lommerts noted. “It is a sludge cake transfer facility that water authority will be able to use for more than half a century,” said Lommerts. The Garmerwolde Wastewater Treatment Plant is the central processing site for the sewage sludge of water authority and water authority .
Herman Beerda is proud of all the developments underway. Years ago, the sludge left behind was spread as fertilizer on farmland. This has not been desirable for years. Innovation regarding sludge is therefore important. Additionally, phosphate recovery is necessary. The availability of phosphate cannot be taken for granted, and recovering phosphate is therefore very important for both the present and future generations. After all the wonderful and inspiring words, the group headed to the construction site. Herman Beerda climbed into the crane to drive the first foundation pile.
Energy efficient, space saving, and safer
The new sludge cake transfer system reduces energy consumption by approximately 30 percent compared to the current installation. In addition, the loading of sludge into trucks will be further optimized. The trucks are placed on a weighbridge, allowing them to be loaded with great precision. This will reduce the number of vehicles on the road, which is better for all local residents. Because the construction will mainly involve building upwards, a lot of space will be saved on the site of the wastewater treatment plant in Garmerwolde. The new transfer system is a so-called closed transport system. This means that employees will have less contact with the sludge cake. This makes the new working environment safer for staff.
A northern collaboration
In recent years, the Hunze en Aa’s Water Authority, water authority en Overijsselse Delta water authority , and water authority have sought to collaborate on the processing capacity of sewage sludge. In 2019, a decision was made to find the most sustainable solution possible for final sludge processing. This led to a contract with SNON (Slibverwerking Noord Oost Nederland), a partnership between GMB BioEnergie Zutphen and Energy from Waste Delfzijl (EEW). EEW processes the sludge from the water authorities in a mono-incineration plant. The heat released in this process is used to produce steam for supply to companies in and around Delfzijl. In short, energy recovery from sewage sludge. In time, the raw material phosphate will also be recovered from the ash residues of the incineration process.
