Results from the 2nd expers’ panel of LIFE VERTALIM Project
Last Thursday, April 19, the second expert panel of the LIFE VERTALIM project was held at the Berriatua City Hall.
To the meeting, in addition to project partners, among the stakeholders, there were entities responsible for sanitation services, consultancies and specialized in environmental engineering, as well as other fish industries.
In this meeting the results of the project were presented to date and results were contrasted to see its applicability to other areas with similar problems. All the participants showed a very participative and active attitude, contributing experiences to consider in the project, so that the proposed solution responds to a wide spectrum of problems.
Regarding the main technical barriers to be overcome for implementing industrial wastewater management options, the effects of non-retained fats in the pretreatments of canneries were exposed, as well as the high levels of hydrogen sulphide derived from the high retention times in the collector network, although this parameter has been considered in the modeling of the entire network and can be foreseen to modify the management of the sanitation network.
It was also put on the table of this meeting, that one of the critical points is the type of control that is going to be carried out the control on wastewater discharges valves from canneries to collector. Within the project, it has been decided to implement a guidance control, through the establishment of loading shifts, since, based on the data from the virtual simulation platform, a series of recommendations for management, agreed between the parties involved.
The perception of society was also addressed, the implications of the activity of the canning sector and the improvements being made to improve its activity.
Among the main conclusions drawn from the day, are the following:
- It is important to select a good engineering and properly size the pre-treatment to avoid operational problems as much as possible.
- It also becomes clear that communication between all stakeholders has been fundamental to try to solve all the problems that arise. From the first moment, the objective has been to explain and agree on all the steps that are taking place in the project to avoid impositions. In addition, based on this communication confidence is strengthened to move forward when properly managing discharges.