Water management – water resources management, safe water supply, sanitation, and wastewater treatment – is a global key challenge of the 21st century. Innovations in all sectors of water management are essential – in industrialized countries and especially for the developing world, in arid and semi-arid environments.

The Fraunhofer IGB has developed a toolbox of technical innovations for sustainable decentral water management systems, which are embedded in holistic infrastructure concepts and combined with energy and waste management. These innovations can be adapted and combined to generate individually the most favorable solution for the specific needs of each country or region.

The concept encompasses saving water by vacuum or air pressure systems for wastewater sanitation and utilization of rainwater. An attractive alternative to conventional sewage plants is the use of anaerobic biotechnology. Organic carbon compounds are transformed to methane (biogas), which can be used as energy source in combined heat and power plants. The nitrogen and phosphorous content remains in the water and in the residual wastes. After thermophilic anaerobic treatment the water is free of pathogens and hygienically harmless. Microorganisms are removed by modern filtration techniques (rotating disk filter), saving not only fresh water but also fertilizer, due to the ammonium and phosphate content.