Free Flow

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ater

ooperation

, S

ustainability

and

overty

radication

climate change that the urban water sector needs to address. The final

year of the project is dedicated to the demonstration of real-life situ-

ations at the Prepared water utilities. Successful cooperation between

researchers, technology suppliers and water utilities has resulted in

approximately 30 on-site demonstrations. The final conference will

be held in January 2014 in Aarhus, Denmark.

Contributing knowledge and expertise

Aarhus Vand leads the way globally when it comes to effective wastewa-

ter management. Alongside DHI, it contributes to the Prepared project

with its knowledge and expertise from the Aarhus Å-projektet (Aarhus

River project). This project is about flood prevention and preventing

wastewater from overflowing into lakes, streams and bays by creating

large basins and ensuring optimal control of basins, sewerage plants

and water treatment plants. It is a full-scale project, fully financed and

therefore ideal in this context. Along parts of the Aarhus River and on

the Port of Aarhus, urban development is rapid and will continue at a

fast pace in the coming years. The Aarhus River was previously covered,

but it is now uncovered and has become a recreational element in the

city. The part of the harbour close to Aarhus has been converted from

industrial harbour to new city areas. Here, too, water and canals will be

important recreational elements. In 2005, the Municipality of Aarhus

decided to improve the quality of water hygiene in receiving waters

through the Aarhus River project, in order to support opportunities

for the recreational use of Lake Brabrand (Brabrand Sø), the Aarhus

River and the Port of Aarhus. In more measurable terms, this decision

is driven by the Water Framework Directive and the Bathing Water

Directive and the planned solution must be adapted to the expected

climate change scenario.

As an integrated part of the Aarhus River project, Arhus

Vand has implemented one of the world’s most advanced

systems in which the control of all installations is coordi-

nated from one point. A challenge for the city of Aarhus

is the recreational area, Lake Brabrand, which is close

to the city centre and is connected to Aarhus Harbour

through the small Aarhus River. The water in the lake,

river and harbour was adversely affected by combined

sewer overflow, stormwater drains and effluent from

wastewater treatment plants. Efficient and flexible opera-

tion, especially during rainfall events, will be secured by

new integrated control and an early warning system. This

will improve water hygiene, including during expected

climate change scenarios like intense rainfall and rising

sea levels. The demonstration will involve improved

rainfall monitoring, integrated control of sewer and

wastewater treatment plants, and early warnings on the

water quality of receiving waters. By taking the chal-

lenges posed by climate change into account, excellent

water quality will be produced by implementing the

designed solution of sufficient basin volume, sufficiently

high water quality through increased hydraulic capacity,

and disinfection at the wastewater treatment plant.

As part of the Prepared project, the Aarhus River project

has resulted in improved cooperation with colleagues from

Lyon, Berlin and Barcelona. It enables international envi-

ronmental research to be applied concretely and locally,

with the intention of cooperating across borders using the

latest technology in the fight against climate changes.

Rapid urban development has made effective wastewater management a priority in the city of Aarhus

Image: Aarhus Water