Veolia Leads European Wastewater Surveillance for Public Health
Veolia leads a 3-year wastewater surveillance program analyzing 500 samples across Europe to support EU health policy and early threat detection.
www.veoliawatertechnologies.co.uk
Veolia, the world leader in water technologies, is at the helm of a groundbreaking European epidemiological surveillance program that leverages wastewater as a real-time health indicator. The goal: detect emerging threats early and protect urban populations across the continent.
Veolia will oversee the monitoring aspect of this three-year program and will analyze up to 500 wastewater samples collected from European cities in its laboratories in Spain. Each sample will undergo more than 500 in-depth analyses, targeting a wide range of pollutants, viruses, bacteria, and drug residues.
This initiative is aligned with the revised European directive on wastewater treatment, which formally embeds epidemiological surveillance as a pillar of public health. It is also part of the European “One Health” strategy, which will enable the analysis of collective behavior, the assessment of the impact of public policies, and the identification of new threats, while strengthening Europe's health sovereignty. This principle was recently reiterated in the European Strategy for Water Resilience.
Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of Veolia said : “Being a pioneer means anticipating tomorrow's challenges, and that's exactly what we're doing here, by transforming wastewater into an early warning tool on a European scale. This project is a concrete embodiment of our GreenUp strategic plan: our environmental solutions are also solutions for the health of citizens and the resilience of European territories.We are delighted to be able to bring the Group's expertise in water treatment and environmental health to the European Union, and to pave the way for a more connected, intelligent, and preventive public health system.”
The project is led by Veolia, in partnership with the CSIC (Spanish National Research Council), Cetaqua (Veolia Water Technology Center), and the University of Santiago de Compostela. It is based on more than ten years of field experience in wastewater monitoring in Madrid, Barcelona, and Seville, covering nearly a third of the Spanish population.
Daniel Tugues, CEO of Veolia Spain, said : “The Covid-19 pandemic has revealed the untapped potential of wastewater for public health monitoring. This project puts that learning into practice on a large scale. We are very proud that the expertise of our teams is recognized at the European level. Thanks to this project, Spain is at the forefront of a new approach to environmental health, combining scientific rigor, technological innovation, and a commitment to the common good.”
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