The essence of the project is to install and conceptually demonstrate an innovative monitoring solution developed by Riga Technical University for monitoring the quality of treated wastewater. This monitoring solution collects wastewater-quality data every minute using six physico-chemical parameter sensors. The monitoring data make it possible to monitor the quality of treated wastewater in real time and provide insight into the variability of wastewater quality and the factors affecting it.

The main objective of the project is to develop recommendations for a wastewater-sampling methodology that takes future monitoring requirements into account — i.e. to assess existing wastewater-sampling methods and develop recommendations on how to improve the frequency and accuracy of wastewater sampling. These improvements will make it possible to obtain more reliable and transparent data and to reduce the potential pollution risks that may arise from discharging insufficiently treated wastewater into surface water bodies.

As a result of the project, 1-minute data on treated wastewater will be collected over 30 weeks from six different physico-chemical parameter sensors (approx. 300,000 data points) and compared and correlated with laboratory measurements (biological oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, total phosphorus and total nitrogen, as well as microbiological parameters) taken both while the wastewater treatment plant operates in normal mode and at times when the sensors indicate anomalies. It is expected that online measurements of simpler indicators will make it possible to derive relationships regarding changes in pollutant indicators, which would in future be cheaper and more efficient than wastewater sampling and laboratory measurements, whose results are usually obtained within a maximum of 7 days — too late for monitoring the biological wastewater-treatment process. The project results will be presented in 1 report, including recommendations for the sampling methodology, and at 1 thematic seminar.

In the future, the project results will help to better understand the biological wastewater-treatment process and pollution sources, to take the necessary measures by responding in a timely manner and optimising the operation of wastewater treatment plants, and to reduce the impact of pollution on the surrounding environment.

Successful implementation of the project would provide the necessary baseline information for the water-management sector and the whole industry to ensure regulatory compliance, improve decision-making, prevent pollution risks, increase energy efficiency and strengthen human capital in the sector — developing the idea that introducing such a monitoring solution is important and essential in the future not only for water-management companies but also for the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development (VARAM), to ensure control of the efficiency of the wastewater-treatment process and protect public health and the surrounding environment.