Yorkshire Water turns on nature-based wastewater plant

Yorkshire Water has started up nature-based, sustainable wastewater treatment at its Clifton wastewater treatment works, near Doncaster.

The site is an integrated, constructed wetland, with the clay in the ponds and the plants naturally removing phosphorus from treated wastewater before it is returned to the environment. Its ponds will provide the only wastewater treatment on site as a trial to monitor nature-based treatment processes. The project is a collaborative partnership between Yorkshire Water, Stantec, BarhaleDoosan and the Environment Agency.

Lead project manager at Yorkshire Water, Michael Housby, said the project will reduce reliance on “energy-heavy treatment processes,” and will “hopefully lead to the creation of other similar sites across Yorkshire” in other treatment works earmarked a as possible sites where nature-based solutions can be implemented.