His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange officially brought the Harnaschpolder waste water treatment plant in Midden-Delfland into use on Wednesday 28 March. With this plant, the purification capacity in The Hague region will be considerably expanded. The Harnaschpolder waste water treatment plant will soon be treating 75 percent of the effluent from The Hague and surrounding area.
The construction of the Harnaschpolder waste water treatment plant is part of the public-private partnership between the Delfland Water Board and the Delfluent consortium. Evides is partner in this consortium. The Water Board has entrusted the financing, building, maintenance and management of the Harnaschpolder plant to Delfluent until 2033. This public-private partnership – the first in the Dutch water board sector should lead to cost savings, risk management, innovation and sustainability.
The Harnaschpolder waste water treatment plant is vitally important for the entire region of The Hague. European regulations are imposing every stricter demands on purified waste water. Furthermore, more and more people live and work in the area. The waste water from the Harnaschpolder plant is biologically purified. This means that nitrogen and phosphates are removed from the waste water by means of bacteria without the addition of chemicals. This method is less expensive and better for the environment.
The Delfland Water Board started in 2003 with The Hague Region Waste Water project. Besides the building of the new Harnaschpolder plant, the Houtrust plant in The Hague will be renovated. In addition, the pipelines that transport the waste water to both plants will be modified.