Apart from the construction of the sewage network, the „Clean Serbia“ Project also includes the construction of wastewater treatment plants. It is possible to address the negative statistics on the circumstances in this field only systematically and on the level of the entire country.
The implementation of the „Clean Serbia“ Project is currently ongoing in more than 20 cities in Serbia. Many construction sites currently include the construction of sewage network so that the wastewater can be drained away from the urban settlements. By constructing the sewage network for the residents of cities and municipalities, an opportunity to preserve a healthy environment, biodiversity of rivers, but also a higher standard of living for the very residents is provided. The impelementation of the „Clean Serbia“ Project includes a further level of water treatment through the construction of wastewater treatment plants.
The main goal of wastewater treatment is to remove as much of the suspended solid matter as possible before the remaing water, which is called the effluent, is discharged back into the environment. As the solid matter is broken apart, it consumes oxygen which is necessary for both plants and animals inhibiting the waters.
In order to achieve the goal of enviornmental protection and preservation and the increase in the standard of living, the plan is to construct 165 wastewater treatment plants in Serbia through the project.
The process of wastewater treatment directly correlates to the availability of drinking water.
The circumstances in this field are also illustrated in the „Guide to wastewater treatment“ which was made in 2019 by NALED, authored by Nebojsa Pokimica:
-32.7 % of public water supply systems in urban areas had both physical and chemical defects in the drinking water in 2019.
-63.5 % of the Serbian population uses underground waters for water supply (wells, boreholes, tapped springs)
– Less than 8% of municipal wastewater is treated before discharge in the Republic of Serbia
-14.4% of the population was covered by a wastewater treatment system in 2019.
– Only around 65.2% of the population (the number of households – 1,572,314) is connected to a sewage system, while the rest resort to septic tanks.
– An approximate number of cities/municipalities that have a wastewater treatment plant in Serbia is 47. Out of those, only 26 are operational (with two being reconstructed and five in trial work)
– Only 5 units of local goverment possess a plant with a tertiary treatment
All the aforementioned data is the reason for the implementation of the „Clean Serbia“ Project.
