iWatermap project partners meeting in Heraklion (Region of Crete, Greece)

On 9 and 10 April, a meeting of iWatermap project partners took place in the Heraklion (Region of Crete, Greece).
Dāvids Štēbelis from Water Research Laboratory presented a summary of activities carried out in recent months. This included conclusions about the actors (prospects and leads) in the water industry that fit into the Triple Helix model developed by Henry Etzkowitz researcher from Stanford University.

The Triple Helix model describes the interaction between Academia, Industry, and Government to promote economic and social development.
David sketched out the key challenges for Academia-Industry; Academia -Government and Industry -Government relations.
The meeting was also attended by Jānis Rubulis senior researcher from the Water Research Laboratory; Marika Laudere and Ronalds Štrauhs representatives of the Ministry of Education and Science, as well as Gints Pērkons, Executive Director of the Latvian water and wastewater works association, and Marita Stradere, Deputy Director of education and research at Mechanics and Technology College of Olaine.

Practical lesson at the Jelgavas ūdens

On 11.04. our students had a practical lesson at the Jelgavas ūdens water treatment plant. It was a great opportunity for students to see all water treatment at work, get a better understanding of the whole process and solve real tasks in water treatment plant. Many thanks to Jelgavas ūdens for this great chance and warm welcome!

Interreg BEST Project Partners meeting in Riga

From April 2 to 4, Riga Technical University (RTU) Water Research Laboratory within the Interreg Baltic sea region Programme 2014-2020 project #R054 BEST – Better Efficiency for Industrial Sewage Treatment organized a meeting of project partners in Riga, which took place at the premises of RTU Faculty of Architecture. At the partner meeting, Water Research Laboratory was represented by scientists Kristina Tihomirova, Sandis Dejus, Jānis Zviedris, Ksenija Golovko and Tālis Juhna, and Arta Čakša-Lapsiņa, Head of Project Preparation and Development Unit of RTU Project Management and Development Department.

The partner meeting was led by Sandis Dejus, during which he presented the WP2 Progress Report and a presentation on the project’s legislative summary of legislation and RTU’s experience of interviews with manufacturing companies and municipal water management related to wastewater discharges into centralized sewerage systems.

Important speakers as Iveta Teibe (Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia), Jānis Jansons (Lakalme ltd), Karina Steinberga (A/S Smiltenes piens), Katarzyna Umiejewska (Warsaw University of Technology), Kuldar Kipper (E-Piim Tootmine and Põltsamaa Varahalduse), Imants Bozovics, (Latvijas Piens LTD), Romans Neilands (Riga Technical University, Rigas udens ltd), Pirjo Patala (JVP-Eura Oy), Paweł Królak (City of Warsaw), Esa Nikunen (City of Helsinki) were participated in open day workshop at 03 April.

During the partner meeting, a wide range of stakeholders had the opportunity to participate in a seminar on the management of wastewater from food production, with particular emphasis on the specifics of wastewater treatment in dairy companies. The project partners also visited the LTD Adazu udens Waste Water Treatment Plant and the Orkla Confectionery & Snacks Latvija chip factory in Adazi to discuss the established cooperation model between the two companies and get acquainted with the wastewater treatment processes of both companies.

Thanks to all participants for active participation in the partner meeting and workshop, as well as the teams of LTD “Adazu udens” and Orkla Confectionery & Snacks Latvia for the support and admission of project participants!

The next project partner meeting is scheduled for November 2019 in Kaliningrad! More information about the project: https://bestbalticproject.eu

Bielefeld University (Germany) partners visit at Water Research laboratory

At the beginning of March, partners from Bielefield Univeristy, Faculty of Physics (Germany) came to Riga, to Water Research Laboratory, to meet Prof.Talis Juhna and Asoc.Prof.Jānis Rubulis. Thus partners from Germany (physics of supermolecular systems and surfaces) introduced more closely with plans about developing a new material for forwarding osmosis applications. They were shown laboratory and introduced with us. Also partners discuss about possible cooperation in the future, in the field of carbon nanomembranes.  

New Doctor in Water Research Laboratory

We are proud to announce that Sandis Dejus, a researcher at our Water Research Laboratory, successfully defended his doctoral thesis “Online Monitoring of Drinking Water Quality”.  Within the framework of the doctoral thesis, analysis of drinking water quality monitoring requirements and systems was performed and a new solution for drinking water quality online monitoring was developed.

And on 25th of February at the meeting of the Senate of the Riga Technical University (RTU) our new Dr.Sc.ing. Sandis Dejus received his diploma!

Congratulations! 

The International Education fair “Skola 2019”

The 25th International Education fair “Skola” (From 1 to 3 March, Ķīpsala ) – the most important event for thousands of young people in Latvia to offer the broadest and quality coverage of study opportunities in Latvia and abroad. Also, Senior researcher Jānis Rubulis and Dr.Sc.ing. Sandis Dejus from Water Research Laboratory, one from the more than 140 participants, took a part in this fair by introducing with the workshop “Drinking water miracle” to help visitors raise interest to water science and, probably, to become one of us!

Special issue “Drinking Water Treatment and Removal of Natural Organic Matter”

Prof. Dr. Talis Juhna took a part in the Special issue “Drinking Water Treatment and Removal of Natural Organic Matter”

iWatermap experts participation in Cleantech Latvia General Meeting

On January 31, RTU iWatermap (https://www.interregeurope.eu/iwatermap/) experts Jānis Rubulis and Dāvids Štēbelis where involved in Cleantech Latvia General Meeting of Members. David presented some of the most important observations from the company interviews conducted in the iWatermap project and presented publicly available funding for collaboration with universities in the near future.

RTU experts together with RTU Design Factory (http://rtudf.rtu.lv/) Project Manager Liene Briede did presentations about iWatermap project concept, financial opportunities for Industry – Academia cooperation.

After the main event participants look around premises of RTU Design Factory and were introduced with technical opportunities and prototypes build for water industry.

Visit to Cēsu alus

At the end of the year 2018, WRL staff Janis Rubulis and Sandis Dejus visited JSC Cēsu alus. The purpose of the visit was to evaluate and analyze the risks of drinking water abstraction and water supply system at JSC Cēsu alus. JSC Cēsu alus was chosen as one of the pilot sites for testing the concept of Water Safety Plans in Latvia.

 

NOAH kick-off meeting in Tallin, 28-29.01.2019.

January 28-29, Tallinn University of Technology, Faculty of Construction and Architecture hosted a NOAH project kick-off meeting.

All partners gave a brief presentation of their experiences, challenges, and competencies.

Both “Jūrmala Water” Ltd and Liepaja City Municipality “Communal Authority”  also presented potential pilot sites where the project will be carried out by testing of key ideas – modeling of precipitation loads in prepared and combined sewerage systems. The Ogre Municipality, on the other hand, presented the section of the Ogre River, which will simulate the flood hazards of populated areas caused by precipitation as well as the winter period.

In these pilot sites, water quality testing is planned for two years with the aim of determining the pollution load on the Baltic Sea, extreme weather conditions, as well as the impact on the environment from decentralized wastewater facilities.

Interesting experiences in the context of the use of online devices in infrastructure and modeling of different scenarios during the flood were presented by Gdansk University of Technology and Slupsk Water Supply. In turn, the municipality of Ogre, in the context of the floods caused by the river, will learn from the experience of the city of Pori.

At the meeting, RTU was represented by a senior researcher of Water Research Laboratory Jānis Rubulis and Associate Professor of Geodesy Department Maris Kalinka.