This is one of the most promising solutions for reducing water shortages worldwide, particularly in Africa. Tunisia is well aware of this, and has been adopting it for several years now, given the proliferation of wastewater treatment plants. In 2024, the Tunisian government plans to build a new one in the governorate of Gabès, in the south-east of the North African country. The project was unveiled on February 26, 2024.
The National Sanitation Office (ONAS), which manages this sector in Tunisia, will implement the project thanks to a grant of 67 million dinars (around $21.3 million) from Japan. The funding was recently granted through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Preserving groundwater resources
The future wastewater treatment plant will be unique in that it will be equipped with reverse osmosis technology. This will enable tertiary treatment of effluent using membranes. This should ensure that even the smallest particles, particularly total dissolved solids (TDS), which were missed in the previous stages, are taken care of.
This process used in wastewater treatment would also reduce water and sewage disposal costs, and enable a higher percentage of this resource to be reused. The use of low-fouling membrane technology in reverse osmosis wastewater recovery systems would also reduce operating costs.
In addition to reducing effluent pollution, the commissioning of the Gabès wastewater treatment plant, expected to have a capacity of 6,000 m3 per day, will make the governorate’s industries more independent of groundwater. This is particularly true of the Groupe Chimique Tunisien (GCT) plants, which produce and process phosphate in Gabès, Tunisia.
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In this governorate of over 407,000 inhabitants, the scarcity of surface water due to drought has forced industries to overexploit aquifers for their activities, the main source of drinking water, plunging populations into a situation of severe shortages. Reusing treated wastewater could tip the balance.
Inès Magoum