EThe Mayor of Quito, Mauricio Rodas, this Wednesday morning of February 8^th 2017 inaugurated the new Sewage Water Treatment Plant –SWTP- Quitumbe, which will environmentally recover the Machángara River. The work was done through the Potable Water and Sanitation Metropolitan Public Company (PWSMPC).

This Project demanded an investment of 12 million dollars. It is the first that is constructed in Quito and will benefit more than 75 thousand habitants of the following neighborhoods: Manuelita Sáenz, San Alfonso, Nuevos Horizontes, Los Cóndores, Los Arrayanes, San Francisco del Sur, Martha Bucaram de Roldós, La Ecuatoriana, Las Orquídeas, La Concordia y Ninallacta.

The Plant counts with top technology and it is totally automated, making it the most modern of the country and the first in the city. It will operate the 24 hours of the day during the 365 days of the year.

After its inauguration, Mayor Mauricio Rodas toured the installations to know with detail the operating process of the Plant along with Bernardo Requena, CAF representative; Marco Antonio Cevallos, PWSMPC manager; María Fernanda Pacheco, president of the Patronato San José and other authorities.

“It is one of the biggest infrastructure Works that will permit us progress into our vision of a Sustainable Quito. With this plant –the first in the city and most modern in the country- we are taking a fundamental step that will permit, along with the construction of interceptors get to the year 2019 with the totality of the rivers south from Quito, decontaminated”, said the Mayor, highlighting that this will mean improvements in the flora, fauna and ecosystems, for a more healthy environment for all the citizens.

He reminded that this puts an end to a story behind of the city that what it did was discharge sewage water in rivers, streams, without the proper treatment, which has caused during decades and even centuries, the contamination of rivers and streams in the city.

The Mayor said this is not the only project for the city in terms of sewage waters, the Vindobona project has also been presented for the construction of a great Sewage Water Treatment Plant in San Antonio de Pichincha, as well as hydroelectric generation works and big pipes which could treat 7 thousand liters per second, that is more than 70 times that of the Quitumbe Plant.

“This great Vindobona Project represents an investment of around 900 million, which we are promoting through a private public alliance for which a lot of companies on a world level have presented their interest. This shows an integral vision of our Administration for progressing to a Sustainable Quito”, said the Mayor.

Mauricio Rodas used the occasion to communicate the Quito citizens at the beginning of the bidding for the construction of this great potable water project provision “Chalpi Grande – Papallacta” through which it will be possible to guarantee the provision of water to the Quito citizens until the year 2040.

For this Project, that will begin this same year, the PWSMPC has already been benefited of a credit of approx. 70 million dollars of the French Development Agency. “Without a doubt it will be one of the main legacies in favor of the Quito citizens”, Roda assured.

SWTP does the treatment for 100 liters of water per second

Juan Esteban Espinosa, from the Sewage Water Treatment Department in the PWSMPC gave details of the processes that are managed in the new Treatment Plant in Quitumbe.

The first step is the process denominated Pre Treatment, through which the coarse and fine solids are removed just as floating elements, oils, greases and sand.

The following step is the Biologic Treatment that is known as activated sludge with extended aeration in which air is injected to favor the bacteria growth which degrade the organic material, considerably reducing the contaminant load in a 90%.

Previous to the discharge to rivers and streams the water goes through a Terciary Treatment that consists in the micro filtration and posterior disinfection with UV rays. All this physical and biological processes give as a result the recovery of the water that can be exclusively used for risk activities and conservation of the aquatic and wild life.

In this way the Quito Metropolitan District Municipality works in the ecological and environmental recovery of the surrounding of rivers and streams of the QMD that contributes to notably improving the life conditions of the population, the functionary highlighted.

More details on the brand-new Treatment Plant SWTP Quitumbe

Its location is technically strategic at the south of Quito, with an extensión of 1.5 hectares located between the Huayanay Ñam and Rumichaca Ñan avenues; and, it has the capacity to treat a flow of 100 liters per second of sewage waters that are incercepted through an emissary of 930m of length (discharge pipe) and a micro tunner through the Huayanay Ñan avenue.

Also in the South of Quito Decontamination Plant, the construction of various kilometers of sanitary interceptors has been executed in the rivers and streams of sout. The total investment of the construction of interceptors and the SWTP Quitumbe ascends to USD 53 million.

fuentes: http://prensa.quito.gob.ec ; https://twitter.com/MauricioRodasEC ; EPMAPS