Among the operations already contracted, are the three oxidation, ozonation and homogenisation tanks that will be completed at the beginning of 2024. General Manager Andrea Chiorboli explains the future strategies
At Acque del Chiampo, which deals centrally with aqueduct, sewage, purification and landfill sludge disposal services and boasts 10 municipalities in the Arzignano and Ovest Vicentino area as shareholders, they look to the future with renewed confidence. In the past year, several projects have been contracted out, and will be completed by the beginning of 2024: this was confirmed by the General Manager Andrea Chiorboli, whom we interviewed at the conference entitled ‘Sustainability Solutions: how to face the challenges of sustainability in the tanning sector’, hosted at the end of April at the company headquarters.
“Between now and the early months of next year,” Chiorboli explains, “we will progressively complete three important works, consisting of the construction of the ozonation section, as well as the new homogenisation and oxidation tanks. The first project, which has already been completed, concerns the biological oxidation system, which is the main reactor where the degradation process of the tanning wastewater takes place: in addition to being more efficient than the previous one, it allows us to save money, as well as the oxygen and energy required to run it. The ozonation phase, the final stage of the plant, which is already unique because it is not normally applied in traditional purification plants, will guarantee a better result in terms of visual perception of the discharge, which is much clearer, and a further reduction of chromium and COD, which already performs at levels close to 100%. The last operation approved is an additional homogenisation tank, from the current 5 to become 6, allowing even more homogenous and uniform regulation of the purification cycle: the discharge from the tanneries, over the course of the week, registers some peaks that must be ‘absorbed’ in the tanks. The system is treated in such a way that all hydrogen sulphide emissions are captured in each section through a revolutionary system. The odour treatment has already been in operation for several years, but must be continually expanded and maintained as the sections increase. For this last stage of the purification plant, which is widely envied in Italy and abroad as being considered a “model”, we will invest around EUR 10 million”.
Are there other projects you are working on?
“The renovation of the water purifier, located at the entrance and visible to all who enter our premises. Apparently it may seem a secondary operation, but in reality it has great significance for us as it is being carried out by the students of the Arzignano middle schools, under the direction of Professor Bruno Bruna. For work on the plastic model, which is more than 10 years old and had to be updated with all that has been produced in this period, we were pleased to involve the students, some of whom will be the technicians and entrepreneurs of the future. The students, who on certain days are accompanied and helped by their parents, will be busy until the end of the school year. Half of them are working on the 3D model, using a three-dimensional printer donated by us, while the other half have a drone that is flown outside to map frame by frame the purifier from the sky, so as to provide the elements to be reproduced and updated”.
Are there further projects in the works, perhaps related to the environmental aspect?
“The 2.5 Megawatt photovoltaic plant, in the area connected to the sewage treatment plant, which will be built within this year, exploiting the surface of a post-closure sludge disposal site: an investment of more than EUR 3 million is planned, already contracted with work starting by early summer. This is a change of strategy: until a couple of years ago, energy was cheap, but with the significant price hike in the last two years, it was necessary to redefine the strategic lines in the energy field. The subject of photovoltaics and renewable energy in general, as well as that of energy communities, is on the table for me and the administrators to seize the best opportunities.
How do you deal with the tanning industries in the area?
“The Arzignano plant serves over 130 large companies in the sector, directly connected, for a purification capacity equivalent to 1.6 million inhabitants. With regard to the environment and the tanning activity, which is the peculiarity of our industrial district, Acque del Chiampo has a fundamental role, interconnected with the industries of the valley. It is a two-way collaboration: on one side we are the controllers, since we must in any case respect the rules, which are instrumental to the proper functioning of the purification plant. On the other, we are partners of the companies themselves, representing the final part of the production chain of the tanning industry. In a different context, each tannery would have its own purification plant, with its own vulnerabilities and possible risks’.
Your history began in 1974, next year you will celebrate half a century. A strategy that over time has also proved to be fundamental for the protection of the territory…
“Having conceived and designed a centralized plant when the tannery district of Arzignano was still limited, before the growth up to the current level which led to the recognition of the Arzignano Capitale della Pelle brand by the Ministry of Economic Development, was a winning and forward-looking choice. Equally fundamental have been the actions carried out over the years: today we have a facility of enormous dimensions, which requires a wide range of specific skills and professionalism, necessary to manage, maintain and renew it. All in accordance with the goals we have set ourselves but also with the objectives of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and with national and international regulations. The purification plant is what we currently see, also looking at it from above, but behind it there is a daily control and monitoring activity on the connected companies, which is essential for its correct functioning and to guarantee the quality of the discharge for which we are directly responsible on behalf of the companies themselves. To this we must add weather events, which can be a further problem, as happened last year with the drought, a restrictive element that put us in difficulty.”
You are often involved in the organisation of events, such as the conference on sustainability in the tanning sector. Is this a deliberate choice?
“Certainly. Occasions such as these allow you to come into contact with entrepreneurs and technicians in production activities who are always trying to improve, not only for the sake of profit but also to improve the environment and limit environmental impact and be more sustainable. Acque del Chiampo is a public company, the strategic directions and daily input come to us from the 10 municipalities that are members of the valley, whose aim is to operate in the best possible way, putting the economic, social and cultural fabric in the best possible conditions. We have several projects that combine the functionality of the plant and the engineering aspects with the territory, to which we add a rich programme of visits to our facilities, a good number of which are also requested by delegations from abroad and by various associations, not only environmental ones. Last September, we welcomed around 200 Aicc international delegates, for the EuroCongress, hosted at the Vicenza Fairgrounds: it was a great experience accompanying them to see the purification plants’.
From your side, who do you specifically try to involve in the visits?
“Whenever possible foreign delegations, groups and entrepreneurs, we do this also to ensure that we have a continuous exchange of ideas and openness towards new technologies. However, our main focus is on students, not only from Arzignano’s tanning institutes, but also from outside the district and province. The visits mainly involve students enrolled in different universities and faculties, which has recently prompted us to finance two Master’s degrees with Ca’ Foscari University of Venice: the first, in law and the environment, aimed at the legal aspect, provides two annual scholarships; this is the third year of collaboration. A second one, created in the 2022-2023 session, aimed at promoting an integrated water services technician, also addresses management issues and is therefore also open to engineers: the aim is to create new professional skills that are difficult to find in the market today’.