Sustainable Utilisation of Wastewater in Arid Agricultural Regions

• Funded within the German-Egyptian Fund of Collaborative Science by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Science (BMBF) and by the Ministry of Universities and scientific research of the Arabic Republic of Egypt (MHESR) as a result measure of the German-Egyptian year of science and technology 2007.
• Duration:   May 2009 to May 2011

Domestic waste water contains beside the organic fraction and other components, huge quantities of organic bonded phosphorus and nitrogen, both extremely important substances for growing crops within agriculture. Up to now, the domestic effluent of Qena city is almost totally untreated, applied on marginal desert soils, whereby an over fertilization concerning surface and ground water is caused. Especially with regard to scarcity of water reserves, the finiteness of known phosphorous reserves, the energy intensity for treatment processes of effluents and the production of nitrate for fertilization the disposal of domestic waste water represents an under-use of available resources. The utilization so far of surface and ground water for the irrigation intensive cultivation of acreage in arid regions leads more and more to acute water scarcity affecting strongly the security of supply of potable water for citizens.

The scarcity of water is not only caused through the water demand of the crops but also through the inefficient irrigation technology. In many cases only a small part of the water supplied reaches the roots of the crops while the remaining part evaporates before entering into the soil, leading to higher water consumption of potable water which increases the danger of soil salinization. Due to this fact, that fertile acreage in desert areas is a work intensive and valuable property, salinization is an economical and social catastrophe for the owners. The farmland becomes worthless and people loose their ground capital.

The main scope of this project proposal is the Conceptual Development or rather a conceptual investigation with applied-technical aspects constituting the first phase of the entire project of SUWAAR, which due to the relative high scientific complexity, is split into a conceptual and demonstrative phase, whereas first the concept development is calculated. The realization and demonstration of the project SUWAAR will take place after the two years start up based on the gained knowledge by applied scientific research.

The project approach of SUWAAR focuses on: “Provision instead of Disposal“and “Circular Flow instead of Throughput“. Effluent in this case constitutes a new source for process water within agriculture which contains both organic material for humus generation and nutrients, especially rich in phosphorous and nitrate.

IfaS:
Dipl.-Betriebswirt. (FH), Felix Flesch
Phone: +49 (0) 6782 - 17 26 31
E-Mail: f.flesch@umwelt-campus.de

Dipl.-Betriebswirt. (FH), Macro Angilella
Phone: +49 (0) 6782 - 17 26 34
E-Mail: m.angilella@umwelt-campus.de