The training explained the operation of the pilot plant with natural filters inaugurated in May at the zoo to regenerate the water in the facilities.
As part of the European project “LIFE4Zoo: Water Resources Management in Visitor Attractions – FIT4USE Water Recirculation Technology”, members of the Barcelona Zoo staff have received training in sustainable water management. As a LIFE4Zoo partner, the zoo inaugurated in May a pilot plant with natural filters, designed as part of the project, to regenerate water from the facilities.
The trainer presented the project and the consortium that promotes it; she explained both the operation of a natural wetland and the transition to a pilot plant to analyze different types of wastewater, and she detailed the composition of the infrastructure installed at the Barcelona Zoo, which consists of four vertical wetlands and two horizontal ones.
Likewise, the training has served to share some preliminary results of laboratory tests and to describe the process of treating water from different animal species, with the aim of identifying which combinations of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) are most effective depending on the case. Finally, the trainer has highlighted the transversality of the project within the Zoo and the structural importance it has, since the facility is developing new educational lines around sustainable water management.
During the training, Zoo staff responded to a survey on their knowledge on topics such as water management and reuse, NBS, and LIFE4Zoo; a questionnaire that will be repeated in the near future to evaluate the impact of the training and the project.
LIFE4Zoo partner organizations
The project, funded by the European Union through the LIFE program, is coordinated by the Technical University of Liberec (TUL) (Czech Republic). In addition to the Barcelona Zoo, the other participants in the project are the UB Solidarity Foundation, the University of Girona (UdG), through the Environmental Chemical Engineering Laboratory (LEQUIA) research group, the Liberec Zoo (Czech Republic), and the Photon Water Technology group. There is also a group of external experts with participation from the BIOPARC of Valencia and the Cabárceno Nature Park, among others.
UB Solidarity and sustainable water management
The UB Solidarity Foundation has extensive experience in WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) projects, which have promoted nature-based solutions for the sustainable management of water resources.
Currently, in addition to the LIFE4Zoo project, the Foundation participates in the SOLLAGUA project, co-financed by the Interreg Sudoe program, which promotes natural solutions for water reuse in three rural communities in Portugal, Spain and France.
On the other hand, in Senegal, together with the Gaston Berger University (UGB) of Saint-Louis and Món-3, the UB Solidarity Foundation is working on the implementation of low-cost, sustainable and environmentally friendly technologies for the sustainable management of wastewater and sanitation services in the Saint-Louis region; including the installation of an ecological wastewater treatment plant on the UGB campus.
Likewise, in Palestine, together with the Catalan Association for Peace (ACP), the UB Solidarity Foundation contributes to the training of women’s cooperatives in areas such as water management. Meanwhile, in Southeast Asia, it has developed training programs on water resources in six universities and contributed to integrating nature-based water treatment technologies in six cities. In fact, more than 10 years ago, with the National University of Vietnam, the UB Solidarity Foundation created an industrial wastewater treatment plant with ecological systems in Hạ Long Bay, which was the first infrastructure of its kind (Constructed Wetlands) in Southeast Asia.
