Highest purity wastewater

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Highest purity wastewater

When the existing ground-based wastewater system of the Swedish village of Överklinten was condemned, the residents needed to find a new solution and an Uponor Infra WehoPuts treatment plant was chosen. Because Överklinten is located upstream of groundwater wells, and the site is close to a local factory, it made for stringent requirements regarding purity, mechanical separation and the biological and chemical processes also had to be supplemented with a phosphorus trap to capture any excess phosphorus and UV-C radiation, preventing bacterial growth.

The little village of Överklinten, just northwest of Robertsfors Municipality, is located in the Rickleå river valley in the coastal area of Västerbotten, northern Sweden. The village’s landscape is agricultural, and it is located on the mountain Storklinten, with the beautiful lake Hemsjön to the west of the village. For those interested in fishing, Rickleån offers excellent fly fishing for sea trout.

When the existing ground-based wastewater system was condemned, there was an investigation as to an appropriate way of serving the 41 properties in the village, namely a preschool, a business, a hotel, two summer cabins and 36 permanent residences. An Uponor Infra WehoPuts treatment plant was chosen.
Örjan Persson, Robertsfors Municipality’s operations manager explained that there was already a WehoPuts 200 in the municipality which has worked well and had been quick and easy to install. The first WehoPuts plant was installed around 2005, and is still working excellently.

A durable solution for decades

Biochemically operating WehoPuts treatment plants are made of corrosion-resistant Weholite PE plastic pipes that ensure an extremely strong structure and  long service life. WehoPuts is a modular solution which is easy to expand later by adding more processing tank units. The treatment plant can also be customised according to the site and wishes of the customer.
One of the big advantages of the treatment plant is that it is delivered by lorry, ready to install. Once the bed has been dug, you just have to lift the plant in, make piping and electrical connections and backfill. This can all be done in a day, and within 24 hours the plant is up and running. Checking and maintenance of the plant are also quick and straightforward.
With automatic processing, the system is simple and easy to use. The treatment process is carried out in accordance with the batch principle and ensures that all wastewater is treated in the same way. This also ensures the optimisation of treatment and energy and chemical consumption.
Additionally, like all Uponor products, WehoPuts tanks can be recycled at the end of their life.

Purity above and beyond the requirements

The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency's requirement is that 50% of the nitrogen and 90% of the phosphorus and organic matter in the wastewater be precipitated. The WehoPuts meets that requirement. But given that Överklinten has a surface-water source downstream of the pellet factory, Robertsfors Municipality wanted to achieve an even higher degree of purity.
Jörgen Eggesten, Uponor Infra’s area seller explained that the plant achieves a high level of environmental and health protection, but in Överklinten the mechanical separation and the biological and chemical processes have been supplemented with a phosphorus trap, to capture any excess phosphorus and UV-C radiation preventing bacterial growth.
The plant in Överklinten was commissioned in March 2022, and residents are now looking forward to clean water and minimal maintenance.
Örjan Persson added that the collaboration with Uponor Infra had been excellent. Jörgen Eggesten had checked in regularly during the process, and responded really quickly to any questions.