Economic Sustainability in Wastewater Treatment Companies: A Regional Analysis for the Iberian Peninsula

Abstract

An important part of environmental degradation is caused by the discharge of untreated or mistreated wastewater. The reuse of water is paramount to the National Strategic Plan for the Water Supply and Wastewater Sanitation Sector in Portugal and Spain. Since centralized treatment systems have proved to be inefficient, tackling environmental issues requires a regional approach. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) mitigate environmental impacts and contribute to the financial savings of other firms. However, the literature evaluating WWTPs’ financial performance and economic sustainability is scarce. The implementation of a resource recovery technology depends heavily on economic viability. Thus, this paper analyses the financial sustainability of 222 WWTPs in the Iberian Peninsula by NUTS II regions in 2016–2019 to assess the region with the best performance and financial stability and provide regional policy implications. Using the SABI database, this research encompasses a numerical and narrative analysis of key financial ratios. Results show that firms in Algarve and La Rioja exhibit higher financial sustainability when compared to other regions. Results can foster enhancements in the governance of regulated utilities.

Resource flow characterisation and sustainable value creation analysis for the holistic circularity assessment of wastewater systems

“…Employment growth resulting from investment in Deep Purple technology was calculated based on discussions with project partners regarding expectations compared to conventional technologies. Employment of the conventional plant was estimated based on the total employees that work in the wastewater treatment sector in the autonomous community Castile and León (where Soria is located), to calculate an employment factor of workers per population 70 . Then the population of Soria was used to calculate the number of workers in an urban WWTP of a similar size.…”

Frontiers in Freshwater Ecology, Conservation and Water Treatment Technologies

“…Contributions [7,8] focused on freshwater ecosystem monitoring. The contribution [9] proposed measures to improve water efficiency in a public building, contributions [10][11][12] investigated methods to improve wastewater treatment methodologies, contribution [13] evaluated how treated effluent impacted the health of the recipient river, contribution [14] evaluated the economic sustainability of wastewater treatment plants. Bird et al [7] monitored different species of freshwater mussels.…”

“…Therefore, water reuse is paramount to the National Strategic Plan for the Water Supply and Wastewater Sanitation Sector in Portugal and Spain. Since centralized treatment systems have proved inefficient, tackling environmental issues requires a regional approach, according to Santo et al [14]. Therefore, these authors analyzed the financial sustainability of 222 Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) in the Iberian Peninsula representing NUTS II (Nomenclature of territorial units for statistical purposes) regions in 2016-2019 to identify the region with the best performance and financial stability and provide regional policy implications.…”

Economic Assessment of Energy Consumption in Wastewater Treatment Plants: Applicability of Alternative Nature-Based Technologies in Portugal

“…The energy cost of activated sludge-based technologies and HRAP technology from 11 Portuguese WWTPs and other international studies were compared. The most common biological processes for domestic or urban wastewater treatment in Portugal is activated sludge, followed by biological filters, stabilization ponds, anaerobic digestion (UASB) and constructed wetlands [25][26][27], which are operated by 45 companies. There are no HRAP processes operating in Portugal for wastewater treatment, and one of the other novelties of the work is to show the advantages of having such a system operating in the country.…”