Kerala water authority plans Rs 45cr tertiary sewage recycling project in Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Water Authority (KWA) is planning a Rs 45 crore sewage recycling project at Muttathara to ease the pressure on the city’s freshwater supply, with the airport, railways, Titanium, Veli Industrial Estate and Technopark identified as prospective consumers of recycled water.The project involves setting up a 15 million-litre-a-day (MLD) tertiary treatment plant to further treat partially treated sewage effluent from the existing 107 MLD sewage treatment plant at Muttathara. The proposed facility will use advanced treatment technology to improve the quality of the effluent, making it suitable for non-drinking purposes, subject to prescribed quality standards.The existing plant currently produces around 60 MLD of partially treated sewage effluent that can undergo further treatment. However, the proposed facility, with a design capacity of 15 MLD, will process only a portion of this output and will not treat the entire volume generated by the existing plant.KWA has held discussions with the prospective consumers, who have agreed to purchase the recycled water provided the authority ensures supply through pipelines, a KWA engineer said. The tariff to be charged for the treated water, however, is yet to be finalised.The project initially envisaged transporting recycled water to the establishments through tankers. During the final rounds of discussions, the prospective consumers sought pipeline connections, prompting KWA to include a network spanning around 10km in the project, the engineer said.“Economic activities and the establishment of industries, services sectors and shopping centres have increased the demand for water. During peak summer, with the available supply, we often struggle to meet the demand. We hope this project will help us keep pace with the rising demand,” the KWA engineer said.The proposed arrangement could help major establishments meet part of their water requirements using recycled sewage instead of depending entirely on conventional freshwater supplies. This could also leave more freshwater available for households and other consumers, particularly during summer, when demand rises and the authority faces pressure to maintain uninterrupted supply.The initiative is expected to promote wastewater reuse by turning partially treated sewage into a resource for commercial and industrial activities. The airport, Railways, Titanium, Veli Industrial Estate and Technopark are among the establishments identified as potential buyers, though the actual volume supplied to each will depend on the final arrangements and the availability of treated water.The administrative sanction for the project has been completed, and the tendering process is under way. The construction start date will be fixed after the tender is finalised. The project schedule stipulates 12 months for construction.“The finalisation of supply agreements and tariffs with the prospective consumers is yet to be finalised,” a KWA engineer said.Stay updated with the latest Thiruvananthapuram news. Download the TOI App.