Success of the Watertalks conference “Wastewater treatment in the chemical and pharma industry: from research to implementation”
On January 28th, the Institut Químic de Sarrià (IQS), in collaboration with the Catalan Water Partnership (CWP), hosted a new edition of the Watertalks, the conferences organized by CWP together with knowledge centers and universities associated with the cluster. The event brought together more than 90 participants, including industry professionals, research centers, and institutions, focusing on the challenges and most innovative solutions in wastewater treatment in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries.
The session opened with a welcome from Dr. Núria Vallmitjana, Director of IQS Tech Transfer, who emphasized that IQS is a knowledge institution long characterized by its close collaboration with industry. Sandra Colom, Team Leader for R&D and Innovation Resources at ACCIÓ, gave an extensive overview of the opportunities for technology transfer in water management for the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors.
Throughout the day, sector experts addressed key issues such as sludge and hazardous substance management in industrial effluents, presented by Dr. Maria Auset (IQS), as well as the challenge of emerging and persistent pollutants, discussed by Cristian Gómez (IQS). Innovative projects were also presented, including Graflavor, which explored the properties of graphene in the adsorption of odor compounds, led by Carles Colomines (IQS); the Ultimate project, focused on reuse opportunities in the chemical industry in Tarragona, presented by Andrea Naves (Eurecat); and the Promisces project, on innovative technologies for removing persistent pollutants and fostering circularity, presented by Miren Lopez de Alda (IDAEA-CSIC).
The session also featured a round table with representatives from leading companies in the chemical and pharmaceutical sector such as Boehringer Ingelheim and Basf, together with water sector companies Dr. Canicio, Stenco, and Telwesa. The debate addressed the main challenges in wastewater treatment: minimizing environmental impacts, fostering circularity, adapting to upcoming legislative changes affecting the entire industry, the role of public-private collaboration, and key topics to tackle these challenges (digitalization, predictive artificial intelligence, etc.). The discussion was moderated by Dr. Cristina Alonso, Director of the UNIJES Reference Research Center in Ecology and Environment.
The closing remarks were delivered by Xavier Amores, Director of the Catalan Water Partnership, who highlighted the importance of collaboration between industry and research to advance towards more sustainable and efficient water management.
This edition of the Watertalks confirmed the need to boost innovation and technological implementation to reduce the environmental impact of the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, as well as the importance of these spaces for debate and knowledge exchange in addressing the sector’s present and future challenges.
