Capacity of wastewater treatment plants, 1980-2001

Almost all wastewater from companies (92%) and households (98%) is treated at wastewater treatment plants. A number of companies that produce a lot of wastewater treat it in their own wastewater treatment plants.

Developments in urban wastewater treatment plants (UWWTPs)

These days approximately 92% of the wastewater flow discharged from companies and almost 98% of that discharged from households goes to urban wastewater treatment plants. The capacity of these plants has more or less matched population growth in recent years. As a result of the implementation of the European Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (VROM/V&W, 1996), substantial technical modifications are being made to UWWTPs in order to achieve better treatment for nutrients. The aim is to reduce discharges to, and the burden on, surface water by eutrophying substances.

• Emissions into water in the Netherlands, 1990-2001
• Discharges into water and burden on surface water in the Netherlands, 1990, 1995, 1999 and 2000

The number of UWWTPs equipped with extra facilities for additional phosphorus removal continues to rise, with chemical phosphate removal being the most widely used method. However, biological phosphate removal has gained considerable ground in recent years. The number of UWWTPs equipped with extra facilities for additional phosphate removal continues to rise. Since nitrogen removal measures often also take place in the process system itself, it is not possible to give precise numbers of UWWTPs conducting extra nitrogen removal.

• Nitrogen and phosphorus balances for fresh surface water in the Netherlands, 1986-2001

Developments in wastewater treatment plants

The numbers and capacity of industrial wastewater treatment plants rose strongly in the eighties, due in part to the cleanup programme for oxygen-demanding substances. For large-scale dischargers, it became more economically appealing to treat their wastewater themselves because of the considerable reductions in costs for pollution levies.

References

• CBS (2003). Statline. Zuivering van afvalwater. Statistics Netherlands, Voorburg/Heerlen.
• Lievense, A., R.H. Huwae and C.M. Baas (2000). Verwijdering van stikstof en fosfor op rioolwaterzuiveringsinrichtingen, 1998. Kwartaalbericht Milieustatistieken 2000-3. Statistics Netherlands, Voorburg/Heerlen.
• VROM/V&W (1996). Lozingenbesluit Wvo Stedelijk afvalwater. Bulletin of Acts, Orders and Decrees 1996, no. 140. The Hague.

Relevant sections and indicators in the Environmental Data Compendium

• Emissions into water in the Netherlands, 1990-2001
• Discharges into water and burden on surface water in the Netherlands, 1990, 1995, 1999 and 2000
• Emissions to water: terms and definitions
• Environmental pressure in the Netherlands, Eutrophication theme: introduction and policy
• Nitrogen and phosphorus balances for fresh surface water in the Netherlands, 1986-2001

Relevant information outside of the Environmental Data Compendium

• More information about wastewater treatment plants can be found on Statline (Statistics Netherlands).