Pharmaseutical residues
- mikaelseppala
- 11 hours ago
- 2 min read
EU’s new pharmaceutical residue regulation tightens – Finnish technology offers a solution to pharmaceutical residues in wastewater
A recent EU decision confirms that the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry must contribute to the costs of removing micropollutants from wastewater. The decision is related to the EU’s new Wastewater Directive, which requires the removal of increasingly harmful substances, such as pharmaceutical residues, from wastewater.
According to Helsingin Sanomat, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics cause up to 92 percent of micropollutants in urban wastewater, and more than 1,400 kilograms of pharmaceuticals end up in Finnish waterways every year.
At the same time, the EU has introduced so-called extended producer responsibility, which is based on the “polluter pays” principle. According to this, the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry must cover at least 80 percent of the costs related to removing micropollutants at wastewater treatment plants.
Finnish pilot shows solution works
In Finland, related technology has already been tested in practice. SansOx Oy, in collaboration with Savonia University of Applied Sciences and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), implemented a pilot project at the Salo city wastewater treatment plant.
In the pilot, PharmOx technology was tested in the treatment of wastewater discharge waters and the results were very promising:
• The removal efficiency of pharmaceuticals was up to 100%
• E. coli bacteria were completely removed
• A significant reduction was observed in the amount of PFAS compounds
• The amount of dissolved oxygen in the water increased to over 21 mg/l
This technology can be used to simultaneously remove pharmaceutical residues and increase the oxygen content of the water, which supports the ecological status of the receiving water bodies. Wastewater treatment plants can become part of the restoration of water bodies
Current wastewater treatment plants are designed to remove nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, above all. The removal of micropollutants is a new challenge that the EU directive now requires.
According to SansOx, the treatment of discharge water offers a completely new opportunity to improve the state of water bodies.
“The new EU regulation will significantly change the treatment of wastewater. At the same time, it opens up the possibility of introducing technologies that can both remove pharmaceutical residues and improve the oxygen situation in receiving water bodies,” says Mikael Seppälä, CEO of SansOx Oy.
The “polluter pays” principle enables solutions
According to the EU directive, the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry pays for the majority of the removal of micropollutants. This means that water utilities can implement new solutions without significant investment costs.
“With the directive, the financing model is changing. Water utilities no longer have to bear the costs alone, but solutions can be implemented according to the polluter pays principle,” Seppälä states.
Towards wider deployment
The Salon pilot shows that the removal of micropollutants and the oxygenation of discharge water can be combined in the same treatment process. The next step is to expand the pilots to new locations in Finland and Europe.
More information
SansOx Oy
Mikael Seppälä
CEO
+358 500 603020
