EU wastewater directive drives new micro-pollutant filtration technologies

To comply with the EU Urban Wastewater Directive, which requires larger municipal plants to implement a fourth cleaning stage by mid-2027, water associations and research institutions are investing in new technologies to remove micro-pollutants. These substances include pharmaceutical residues, industrial chemicals, and PFAS, which often bypass conventional treatment and enter drinking water supplies.

The Fraunhofer Institute UMSICHT has developed a material-based separation process called ARKON. This three-stage method—involving adsorption, regeneration, and concentration—serves as an alternative to established methods like ozonation or activated carbon. The process uses a circulating resin and recovers process heat. The technology is currently being tested at a large scale at the Wolfsburg wastewater treatment plant.

In Heidelberg, the wastewater association has been expanding its facility since 2024 to include a fourth cleaning stage for phosphorus and micro-pollutant elimination. This plant is designed to serve approximately 360,000 inhabitants.