AQUIRIS

AQUIRIS is a Belgian water-treatment company and a subsidiary of Veolia Environnement. It is the operator of the Brussels-North wastewater treatment plant (station d'épuration de Bruxelles-Nord), which is described on its own website as the largest wastewater treatment plant in Belgium. The company was established in 2007 following a public tender launched by the Brussels-Capital Region for the design, construction and operation of the plant for a 20-year period; the operating period began in March 2007. The plant treats wastewater from the northern and Woluwe sub-basins of the Senne river basin, with a capacity of 1.4 million population equivalents. AQUIRIS's activities cover wastewater treatment, sludge treatment, air treatment and electricity production, with the site generating 50 MWh per day of electricity according to its official homepage. The company uses a wet oxidation process originally developed for the paper industry. AQUIRIS is a subsidiary of Veolia Environnement, the French multinational water, waste and energy group. Its operations are closely tied to the environmental rehabilitation of the Senne, a river that had historically been used as an open sewer in Brussels. The company has been the subject of public controversy, notably in December 2009 when it was accused of halting wastewater treatment for several days, allowing untreated water to flow into the Senne. As a Veolia subsidiary, AQUIRIS operates within the group's global water and wastewater services business, serving the Brussels-Capital Region under a long-term concession arrangement.

AQUIRIS was established in 2007 as a Belgian subsidiary of Veolia Environnement, following a public tender by the Brussels-Capital Region for the design, construction and operation of a wastewater treatment plant in the north of Brussels. The tender, launched in December 1997, sought a concession including the construction of a plant capable of treating wastewater for 1,100,000 population equivalents. The contract was awarded to AQUIRIS, and the operating period began in March 2007. The plant, known as the Brussels-North wastewater treatment plant, treats wastewater from the northern and Woluwe sub-basins of the Senne river basin. It has a capacity of 1.4 million population equivalents, making it the largest wastewater treatment plant in Belgium according to the company's website. The plant uses a wet oxidation process originally developed for the paper industry. AQUIRIS's history is closely linked to the environmental rehabilitation of the Senne, a river that flows through Brussels. From the 11th century, the Senne supported crafts and trade such as tanneries, dye works, breweries, vinegar works and paper mills. By the 16th century, however, it had become an open sewer, and its overflows caused deadly epidemics. A first covering programme began at the end of the 19th century, and the river disappeared under Boulevard Lemonnier and Boulevard Anspach. In the 1950s, its course was diverted and a second wave of vaulting works buried it completely from Rue des Vétérinaires to Quai des Usines, where it resurfaces near the plant site. In the 1980s, a wastewater treatment scheme was drawn up to treat wastewater from the three sub-basins of the river: the South basin, the North basin and the Woluwe basin, part of which lies in the Flemish Region. In December 2009, AQUIRIS was accused of having stopped wastewater treatment for Brussels from 8 to 19 December, allowing untreated water to flow into the Senne. The oxygen level of the Senne returned to normal on 21 December, but it took several months for life to return to the river. This incident was described as an industrial disaster. AQUIRIS continues to operate the Brussels-North plant as a Veolia subsidiary, providing wastewater treatment, sludge treatment, air treatment and electricity production. The site produces 50 MWh of electricity per day.

• 2009

  AQUIRIS is accused of stopping wastewater treatment from 8 to 19 December, allowing untreated water to flow into the Senne.

• 2007

  AQUIRIS is founded as a Veolia Environnement subsidiary; operating period for the Brussels-North wastewater treatment plant begins in March.

• 1997

  Brussels-Capital Region launches a call for candidates for a public service concession including the construction of a wastewater treatment plant in the north of Brussels.

Operator of Belgium's largest wastewater treatment plant, a Veolia subsidiary serving the Brussels-Capital Region under a long-term public concession.

• Wastewater treatment

  Treatment of wastewater from the northern and Woluwe sub-basins of the Senne river basin.

• Sludge treatment

  Treatment of sewage sludge produced by the wastewater treatment process.

• Air treatment

  Treatment of air emissions from the wastewater treatment plant.

• Electricity production

  Production of 50 MWh of electricity per day at the plant.

1. 1Homepage FR | Aquirisaquiris.be
2. 2Historique | Aquirisaquiris.be
3. 3AQUIRIS - Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Aquiris - Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org