Last Friday, Water Europe co-hosted, together with the European Commission and UNEP, the side-event “Shaping a water-resilient world, with water security for all’’ at the 6th Session of the United Nations Environment Assembly.
Pär Larshans, representing Water Europe started his speech, saying ”The world’s biggest, almost unused resource should be utilized to increase water resilience, that is today’s wastewater”. Larshans especially stressed the importance to have a policy shift in today’s wastewater plants, transforming them into resource plants that produce nutrients for food production, energy, and water for agricultural and/or industrial use.
Pär also presented the Water-Smart Society model, where all stakeholders are included, as a way to enable the transformation to take place.
The UNEA6 water resolutions, decided upon after the session, bring hope that global efforts towards achieving a water resilience future will be possible, with the need to utilize resources in water was a key component.
Pär Larshans ended his contribution stating that “Ragn-Sells solutions to produce high quality phosphorus from the sewage sludge and the possibility to produce a nitrogen fertilizer by using the wastewater as the source was examples of innovations, necessary parts, in a future where we only have resource plants that will secure water for all” .
