October 5, 2026
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In a context marked by the need to make the most of available resources, wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are evolving to assume an increasingly important role in the circular economy. Beyond water treatment, these facilities can become true resource recovery centers.
This is one of the main lessons learned from the European project Symsites , promoted by Facsa and Fovasa , which has demonstrated how collaboration between cities and the industrial fabric can transform waste flows into new resources of value for the territory, citizens and productive activity.
Symsites is based on the concept of urban-industrial symbiosis , a model that seeks to connect the flows of resources generated in urban and industrial environments to promote their use and reduce waste generation.
In this way, materials that have traditionally been considered waste can find new uses and become raw materials to generate products and resources such as regenerated water or biogas.
The project thus proposes a new way of understanding sanitation infrastructures: as spaces capable not only of treating wastewater, but also of recovering resources and generating new opportunities for their environment.
At the Ecosite in Spain, located at the Alcoy WWTP , Facsa and Fovasa have developed a pilot plant to study this integration between urban and industrial flows.
The project has made it possible to treat together the urban and industrial wastewater that arrives at the treatment plant with the organic fraction from schools and the Muro de Alcoy residence.
This approach is especially relevant in a territory like Alcoy, where industrial activities such as the textile and cosmetic sectors have a significant weight and require resources such as water and energy to develop their processes.
Experience has allowed us to analyze how different flows generated in the urban environment can be integrated into treatment processes to obtain new usable resources.
One of the key elements of the project has been the combination of different technologies to maximize resource recovery.
On the one hand, anaerobic digestion allows the breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen and the generation of biogas as a result of the process.
On the other hand, the incorporation of membrane technology allows for advanced separation of treated water, contributing to obtaining high-quality regenerated water.
The combination of both technologies demonstrates the potential to integrate wastewater treatment and biowaste management within the same resource recovery model.
The results obtained during the project have shown that this model can function stably under real conditions and transform different urban and industrial flows into valuable resources.
Among the main results of Symsites are the obtaining of quality regenerated water , the production of biogas from organic matter and the reduction of sludge generation.
Reclaimed water can have different applications depending on quality requirements and intended use. In urban areas, it can be used, for example, for street cleaning or watering green spaces , thus reducing dependence on conventional water resources.
Furthermore, the reclaimed water obtained within the framework of the project has reached quality requirements suitable for its use in agricultural applications , expanding the possibilities for reuse of treated water.
In the industrial field, this resource can open new opportunities for uses such as cleaning facilities or certain industrial processes , while the biogas generated can contribute to producing energy or heat , both in the treatment facilities themselves and in industrial activities that require these resources.
The experience developed in Alcoy highlights the potential of wastewater treatment plants as strategic infrastructures to move towards a more circular and efficient water management.
The Symsites project demonstrates that wastewater doesn't have to be just a waste product to be treated, but also a source of resources to be recovered . Water reuse, the valorization of organic matter, and the generation of energy from the wastewater itself allow us to move towards models in which cities and industries can share resources and generate new synergies.
This vision connects with one of the major current challenges in water management: making more efficient use of available resources and promoting their recovery and reuse , contributing to building more sustainable, resilient territories prepared for the environmental and productive challenges of the future.
