Almería is one of the driest regions in Europe, with temperatures in the summer months averaging around 30°C and boasting around 3,000 h of sunshine annually (or 8.2 h per day on average). The annual rainfall averaging 200 mm seems to diminish every year, with 2023 limited to only 133 mm and 2024 a record low of 84 mm, beating the previous value of 90 mm in 2020.
In the 60s, Italian director Sergio Leone decided that the desert landscape was a perfect stand-in for the American Wild West, and shot the “dollars” trilogy with Clint Eastwood (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly). Many desert scenes of the mega-production “Lawrence of Arabia” by David Lean, starring Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif and winning 7 Oscars, were also filmed in the region.
On the other hand, the region is one of the most productive agricultural areas, with greenhouses covering more than 30 000 ha, and another 40 000 ha of irrigated land, which generate around 3 billion € of revenue annually to produce around 3 Million Tons of vegetables (Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini and melons…) for export to Northern Europe.
To supply the region with water for the domestic use of the 750.000 inhabitants, and the close to 1,5 M visitors (or 5 M nights) per year, 5 desalination plants are available (Carboneras, Campo de Dalias, Bajo Almanzora, Almeria and Mar de Alboran) to produce up to 275.000 m3/d.
But despite reducing municipal demand and very efficient irrigation systems, the cost and scarcity of water makes water reuse inevitable, and the neighbouring region of Murcia with a similar climatic and hydrological profile and comparable agricultural activity already is leading water reuse, with 95 % of wastewater used for irrigation and a tertiary treatment capacity equivalent to the desalination in Almeria.
That is why Aqualia decided to implement the Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor (AnMBR) in El Bobar, the main WWTP serving the city of Almeria. The AnMBR is an innovative and sustainable combination of processes used to improve wastewater treatment efficiency, lowering energy needs and sludge production while producing a high-quality effluent for reuse.
The prototype plant installed in El Bobar WWTP consists of a 100 m3 anaerobic reactor, three ultrafiltration membrane modules and all auxiliary equipment that allows a good and safe operation of the plant 24 hours a day. To guarantee its correct operation, there is a monitoring and control system that allows the project researchers to visualise parameters and modify variables at any time.
This technology turns wastewater into a source of resources such as biogas, an excellent biofuel, or reuse water free of solids and pathogens but rich in nutrients to be used in irrigation for agriculture or public gardens, or cleaning of streets and urban areas. Previous tests in Alcazar de San Juan (project LIFE Memory) or Vigo (building recycle with www.Run4Life-project.eu ) as well as pilots in the Citroen Factory in Vigo and the Madrid Valdebebas WWTP showed the potential of the technology, also installed in a small water reuse plant in Tortosa EDAR Santa Rosa Bítemm,Tortosa .
In Almeria, the demonstration of AnMBR is also tied to an active stakeholder outreach with the formation of a Living Lab, connecting other activities to promote water reuse with www.life-phoenix.eu and sustainable desalination in www.ultimatewater.eu with relevant players in the region, such as the University of Almeria or the CIESOL Solar Platform (www.sea4value.eu ).
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