From left: WBL Director of Operations and Maintenance Martien Conjaerts, Senior technology advisor Ralph Bröcheler, WBL General Director Guus Pelzer, Sewage advisor Van Teeffelen, VROMI Minister Egbert Doran, WBL board acting president Arnold Jansen, VROMI acting Head of Infrastructure Management Charlon Pompier and WBL Product Manager Verdygo Olaf Durlinger at Weert wastewater treatment plant.
WEERT--Minister of Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Egbert Doran was informed on Wednesday in the Dutch city of Weert about wastewater treatment with Verdygo technology, with a view to application in St. Maarten.
Doran and VROMI acting head of Infrastructure Management Charlon Pompier were given a tour in Weert by the management of Waterschapsbedrijf Limburg (WBL).
WBL produces treated wastewater and converts sewage sludge into valuable raw materials and energy. The wastewater comes from 500,000 Limburg households and 30,000 companies that are connected to the sewage system. WBL transports the wastewater to one of 17 sewage treatment plants, where it is purified and returned to nature. The sewage sludge is reused as fuel.
According to managing director Guus Pelzer, Verdygo can offer added value in a country such as St. Maarten that has to deal with strong population growth or local treatment problems.
“The system enables the processing of purified water for high value applications such as cooling water, irrigation water, or even raw material for drinking water,” he said. “In addition, Verdygo is more sustainable, flexible due to its modular composition, more cost-efficient and the system has a shorter construction time.”
Pelzer and WBL president Arnold Jansen, together with Verdygo specialists, presented the operation and possibilities of the circular wastewater treatment technology. Much attention was paid to the Nereda Verdygo Package Plant (NVPP). This small-scale solution for water purification, developed by Royal HaskoningDHV together with S.B.E. Machine-en Apparatenbouw and WBL, was awarded this year by Royal NLengineers in the “Ingenuity election”.
Jansen: “We are honoured by this interest in the Verdygo system and look forward to a possible follow-up with the use of Verdygo in St. Maarten.”
Subsequently, the delegation from St. Maarten was shown around and was able to take a closer look at the design and operation of the modular Verdygo technology.
Doran: “The tour and presentation by Waterschapsbedrijf Limburg were an eye-opener when it comes to the current technological availability of water purification systems.
“On St. Maarten, geographic challenges and less accessible areas are a factor of influence in the choice and design of a water treatment plant. The Verdygo technology, designed by the Waterschapsbedrijf, is seen as an implementable solution for the island. On behalf of the government of St. Maarten, we would like to thank Guus Pelzer’s team for their work and dedication to the further development of water treatment plants. We look forward to a pleasant cooperation in the near future.”
