Water & Wastewater Treatment Magazine
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www.wwtonline.co.uk | WWT | FEBRUARY 2017 | 7 Industry news May The Government has published a cyber security strategy for the water sector, summarising what water and sewerage companies need to do to reduce the risks of cyber attacks. Published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the strategy says there are "credible cyber threats to UK Critical National Infrastructure, including the water sector," and that these could lead to serious consequences. The water-specific strategy is part of a government-wide response to the cyber threat, which complements the National Cyber Security Strategy (2016). The strategic vision and objectives have incorporated significant contributions from the sector and aim to guide the activities of water companies and the government. It aims to achieve a vision by 2021 of a "secure, effective, and Cyber security strategy for water sector published confident water sector, resilient to an ever-evolving cyber threat." Key objectives within the strategy include understanding the threats; managing the risk from these threats; managing any incidents that arise in the best way possible; and developing capabilities to increase future resistance and build cyber skills. The cyber risk reviews identified a number of key areas in which the sector should focus its cyber security activities. One of these is the architectural design/ separation of Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT). The paper says that ideally IT and OT systems or networks should be completely separated to prevent infections in IT systems spreading and impacting processes that could cause physical damage. Welsh Water has begun rolling out smart water meters in Cardiff, as part of an EU- funded water usage project. The not-for-profit company will install 250 new digital smart meters in Cardiff, with plans for another 3,000 to be fitted over the next three months. The meters will help customers see how much water they are using and detect any problems, such as leaks, earlier. The company's water demand manager Andy Blackhall said: "We will use the results of the trial to help inform our future long-term business planning activity, and ensure we understand Welsh Water rolls out smart meters in Cardiff fully the costs and benefits of delivering a world-class service to our customers." The meters will measure water usage wirelessly at selected properties in Cardiff, sending information back to the customers every hour so that they can monitor how much they are using, see peak usage times and help manage their household utility costs. The information also gets sent back to Welsh Water who will be able to detect if any leaks or bursts have occurred at the property and get the leak repaired much more quickly. The smart meter trial is part of the EU- funded WISDOM project. Expert view sponsored by Sludge - is it a burden or a blessing for the water industry? Peter Hayes, Business Development Executive CDEnviro Sludge, the by-product of sewage treatment, is largely considered a waste product and not a resource. It can be categorised in to three main groups: primary sludge, generated a er pre-treatment of sewage; secondary sludge, generated a er biological treatment; and tertiary sludge, which undergoes biological and chemical processes to remove phosphorus, nitrogen and suspended solids. Sludge has value and can be used for a number of applications such as agricultural use, combustion technologies and incineration. Despite these various uses, sludge still remains a product that is sometimes sent to landfill. Although it has value, sludge is not produced as a commodity. This is because it is difficult to produce more or less sludge: the quantity is dependent on sewage treatment input, which is difficult to control. Those in the sewage treatment industry o en see sludge as a burden that people will 'pay not to have'. This means a market exists simply to dispose of the sludge for the cheapest possible price. Currently sludge is considered a waste product and disposal services are compensated by sludge producers. Operators attempt to lose as little as they can rather than gain from their by-product of the sewage process. In this mindset, sludge is simply a waste product. Currently, there are companies that bid for food waste from households and supermarkets so that they can use the waste in Anaerobic Digestion (AD) processes. The question then is, can a similar market exist for sludge? Ofwat, the regulator of the water sector in England and Wales, has announced plans to open up the market for sludge by 2020. Their aim is to maximise benefits for customers, the environment and the sewage treatment companies. Markets for sludge treatment and disposal could lead to the use of new technologies in sludge treatment and therefore increased innovation. Ofwat consider this an opportunity to involve third parties or companies that are not traditionally involved in the sewage treatment process. This would not only benefit the economy but also, because of increased competition, the environment through optimised treatment and recycling routes. In addition, with an increasing emphasis on generating Energy from Waste (EfW), how we consider sludge is quickly changing. If and when the market opens up sludge may be considered a resource rather than waste. CDEnviro works within both the Waste Water Treatment and Energy from Waste (EfW) sectors to optimise these processes. We provide sludge treatment systems to remove rag and grit from thickened sludge. Within EfW, our solutions remove rag and grit in the upstream and downstream processes in order to keep the digestion process efficient over time. Ofwat's proposals look set to transform how we view sludge within the UK water sector. Until now, sludge has been seen as a waste product rather than a resource but with the market set to open up, we are likely to see new companies and third parties getting involved in sludge trade. We may begin to see sludge as a blessing rather than a burden. Find out more at cdenviro.com. www.wwtonline.co.uk | WWT | MAY 2017 | 7