Pilot-scale studies of advanced wastewater treatment for direct potable water reuse for beer production

Abstract

The Lisbon Water Smart Living Lab was established in the scope of the B-WaterSmart project (2020-2024) with a strong focus on water reuse (on the short-term, for unrestricted irrigation and otherurban non-potable uses in Lisbon) and will continue beyond 2024 as a water-oriented living lab (WOLL) of the Water4All “Atlas of EU WOLLs”. To build the society’s trust and acceptance of water reuse and anticipating solutions for mitigating future scenarios of more severe water scarcity, the Lisbon WOLL innovation actions included a pilot demonstration of water reclamation for artisanal beer production to provide scientific evidence on the safety of direct potable reuse in industry. The demonstration took place at the Portuguese Beirolas Water Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF), one of the biggest in Portugal, designed for 213,510 population equivalent, comprising anaerobic/anoxic/oxic activated sludge treatment and sand filtration, and receiving urban and industrial wastewater (predominantly domestic) from a combined sewer system draining ca. 2,970 ha in Loures and Lisbon municipalities.