The consequences of climate change are becoming increasingly palpable. An example of this is the drastic reduction in rainfall in Galicia, a region where water stress in some areas is becoming more pronounced every year. Therefore, efficient and sustainable management of the integral water cycle is essential to make the most of this resource.
In this sense, the Waterun project aims at the sustainable management of runoff water in Santiago de Compostela, a way to make better use of rainwater in the city. To this end, VIAQUA, a Galician company in the environmental sector that manages the integral water cycle processes in collaboration with the Water Technology Centre (CETAQUA Galicia), is working on three pilots in two Industrial sites that will be carried out in the framework of the project and will be placed in Santiago de Compostela. Santiago is the capital of Galicia (Spain), a city declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and known worldwide for the Camino de Santiago, it has a population of approximately 98,000 inhabitants.
During these last months, VIAQUA and CETAQUA have been working together with AIMEN, GEAMA and E3A architectural studio on the design of three pilot units for runoff water treatment, one with a sustainable urban drainage system located in the Vial de Ptolomeo (Tambre Industrial Park) and the other two in the industrial park of A Sionlla, which will include a sustainable urban drainage system and a wetland.
The design phase was completed and it is going to be presented to the city council of Santiago de Compostela by the end of July to obtain the construction permits. Once this step has been taken, the next step will be to carry out a dissemination campaign for the companies in the Tambre industrial Park, with the aim of making them aware of the pilot project and familiarising them with the project and its importance for the city.
Authors: Leticia Rodriguez Hernandez, Viaqua, leticia.rodriguez@agbar.es
Oscar Pintos Casal, Viaqua, oscar.pintos@viaqua.gal
Sergio Santorio Aldariz, Cetaqua, sergio.santorio@cetaqua.com