Water is lifelet’s improve it

ECONOMY > MOLDOVA

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Water quality has an immediate impact on people’s lives. Thanks to the European Union and the European financial institutions, over €60 million have been provided to Chisinau to support the modernisation of its water and wastewater infrastructures, which are seriously outdated. This is expected significantly to improve the quality of drinking water, reduce leaks and enhance waste water treatment in the region. An EU Neighbourhood Info Centre journalist visited the area and has this report.

Text by Dmitri Kalak Pictures by AFP © EU/Neighbourhood INFO CENTRE

CHISINAU - “Water is life, and water quality is the quality of life.” This is how Chisinau Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca explains the purpose of the major transformation in the water supply and sewage system being planned by the administration in Moldova’s capital city.Water infrastructures in Chisinau are quite outdated: most of the pipes for water supply and drainage were laid down in the 1960s and 1970s. The purification facilities were built at the same time. Besides being worn out, the system is markedly obsolete; the water decontamination and sewage purification technologies do not meet the present-day efficiency and qual-ity requirements. To support the authorities in their efforts to modernise the system, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Invest-ment Bank (EIB) are allocating a credit of €24 million each, while the EU is providing a grant of €11 million through the Neighborhood Investment Facility (NIF) and €2.4 million for technical assistance.

Making water quality a priority“The problems with water supply and sewage in the city have been my priority since I first took up this position in 2007,” says Chirtoaca. “But we couldn’t solve them without the necessary funding, and our own means were not enough. Today we are effectively cooperating with the EU financing institutions, both the EBRD and the EIB. They

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EU Neighbourhood Info Centre Feature no. 126This is a series of features on projects funded by the EU Regional Programme, prepared by journalists and photographers on the ground or the EU Neighbourhood Info Centre. © 2014 EU Neighbourhood Info Centre

are supporting us in the upgrading of our water supply infrastructure but also with the modernisation of road infrastructure and the renovation of our trolleybus fleet.”In fact, the EBRD is the largest institutional investor in Moldova and to date has signed over 100 investments in the country totalling almost €900 million. Since the start of EIB lending in Moldova in 2007, more than €450 million has been provided in long-term loans, including support for improved roads and public transport, energy and agriculture. And now water.

Targeting sustainable development “Today, water loss in our system amounts to 35%,” says

Vitaly Midar, the technical director of Apa-Canal Chisinau. The enterprise is responsible for the water supply and sewage purification in the capital and will become one of the main beneficiaries of the EU supported project.“The €61 million provided by the European institutions make it possible to implement the programme,” says Midar. The project involves the replacement of 190km of water and sewage pipes, the cleaning and repairing of water collectors, the restoration of 50 artesian wells and the construction of new ones. “This will enable us to reduce the losses, to improve the water quality and to pass on to the stage of sustainable long-term development.”

Treating the sludgeAbout half of the allocated funds will be used to reconstruct Chisinau sewage purifica-tion plants: €15 million will be used to purchase special reservoirs for sludge treatment. Until recently the sludge, semi-solid residual material from industrial wastewater or sewage treatment, was stored and dried in the open air. The unpleasant smell perme-ated the city and has always been a subject of debate during local elections. In 2009, a temporary solution was found; the sludge began to be stored and dried in geo-tubes. The smell became less pronounced and the area occupied by the drying sludge was reduced by a factor of 10. New methane tanks will make it possible to introduce modern technologies of sludge stabilisation and treatment in Chisinau. The methane accumulated in tanks will be incinerated in power stations with the capacity of 1.8 MWt (thermal megawatts).

The need to change people’s habitsAlexandru Vishnevsky, deputy head of the treatment facility’s maintenance service, takes us on a brief tour. “These two pump stations were constructed 30 or 40 years ago and the equipment has mostly remained the same,” he says. “We are now going to build a new station with submerged pumps and a flexible operating system.”Pump station operators Phillip Popa and Victor Ghutsu are invited for a talk in the con-trol room. The working pumps make a lot of noise, while the floor is vibrating. “During the last 30 years we have got used to it, but we are looking forward to the construction of the new station. We hope our working con-ditions will become more comfortable,” they say. “Besides equipment renovation and introduction of new technolo-gies, we need to change the mentality and culture of our customers,” adds Popa. “People should understand that they cannot dump any rubbish into their sewage. We are spending big money on modernisation, so we must take care of it.”

EU Neighbourhood Info Centre – Feature no. 126p. 2Water is life – let’s improve it

“Besides equipment renovation and introduction of new technologies, we need to change the mentality and culture of our customers”

“We couldn’t solve problems without the necessary funding, and our own means were not enough”

N At the water supply station, a new method of disinfection is being introduced

N Chisinau sewage purification plant.

Feeling the benefits At the water supply station, a new method of disinfection is being introduced. Previ-ously, liquid chlorine was used, which is both dangerous and hazardous for health. Under the project, a plant will be built on the station site for hypochlorite production. So far, hypochlorite has been imported from Romania or Ukraine, but during the winter when many roads were blocked, Chisinau had serious problems with supplies for the purification of its water. “With the transition to our own production, we are getting a triple benefit,” says Vitaly Midar. “Water quality will improve, the deliveries will become more stable, while the product itself will cost less.” According to Chisinau’s mayor, the city has long wanted to modernise the water supply and sewage system but were only able to start in 2010, when the European Commis-sion, through its European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument, provided a grant of €3 million to analyse and prepare a project feasibility study. “Without this first step, it would have been impossible to get the loans, as well as to implement the project as a whole,” says Chirtoaca. The water supply and sewage system modernisation project in Chisinau will become the largest investment in the history of the capital.“Now, high water quality is guaranteed for the capital residents for many years to come,” concludes the mayor.

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Water is life – let’s improve it

Modernisation of water and waste water management in Chisinauwww.eib.org/projects/press/2014/2014-025-ebrd-eib-and-eu-finance-improvements-to-water-services-in-moldova.htmThe existing water network in Chisinau, a city of 800,000 inhabitants, is no longer adequate to meet the city’s demands. Due to a lack of investment, key parts of the network are in urgent need of refurbishment. Investment planned under the new upgrade programme will reduce water loss, improve water quality and reduce health risks.Find out more

EU Neighbourhood Info Centre News:www.enpi-info.eu/maineast.php?id=36076&id_type=1&lang_id=450

EBRD websitewww.ebrd.com/pages/homepage.shtml

EIB websitewww.eib.org EU Delegation – Moldova  http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/moldova/index_en.htm

EU Neighbourhood Info Centre Thematic portal : ECONOMYwww.enpi-info.eu/themeeast.php?subject=4

“People should understand that they cannot dump any rubbish into their sewage. We are spending big money on modernisation, so we must take care of it”

N The project involves the replacement of 190km of water and sewage pipes,