Environmentalists, politicians and the man in the street are united in their concern about the threat to marine life and health posed by levels of pollution in the Baltic – and there are encouraging signs that technology is
coming to their aid. Ship operators are already adopting a state of the art on-board treatment process, for example, which enables them to treat all the waste water generated by passengers and crew until it is crystal clear. It can then be discharged safely at sea, with no threat to health or marine life - and the
quality of the processed water exceeds all current maritime standards.

This new system is an elegant and environmentally-friendly alternative to the practice of transferring large quantities of waste water from a ship to land-based services, in harbour. It combines effective pre-treatment and biological aerobic techniques with a sophisticated filtering membrane capable of removing particles as small as viruses.

It has been developed by an Espoo-based company, Evac, and can be installed on new ships or retrofitted to existing vessels. As an example of the difference the new system makes, the company estimates that a ferry which would normally empty its waste water tanks in harbour three times a week would only need to discharge sludge residues once a month, using the new process.

“We all share the common goal of protecting the waters of the Baltic from further pollution – our approach will enable ship operators to do just that, but without simply shifting the whole burden of waste treatment onto land-based resources”, says Juha Kiukas, Project Director at Evac. “We’ve taken the long-term view, and developed an ideal solution which dramatically reduces the need to transport waste and minimises the impact on the wider environment.”

In just one week in summer, the Baltic cruise liners, international cruise ships, and passenger and ROPAX ferries using Helsinki’s harbour can generate as much waste water as a town of 50,000 people – with an inevitable impact on shore-based services.

“It’s a fundamental principle of good environmental practice, to treat all waste at the point of generation”,
explains Jari Jokela, Senior Process Specialist at Evac. “Transferring waste water in harbour is a time consuming and often smelly process, but that’s not the end of the problem: the waste is bulky; it’s potentially harmful to health; it’s volatile; and it costs money and energy to transport. And at the end of its journey, it creates a peak in demand for waste treatment services, where consistency is critical. Does it really make sense to do all that, if there’s a viable alternative available?”

The new solution was developed after detailed study of the nature and volumes of waste water generated on board ships. It offers the potential for future enhancements, such as recycling ‘grey’ waste water from accommodation for re-use in the laundry, for example, and even removing nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous which fuel the growth of algae. /ins



Notes for the editor:
Evac is an international company which belongs to a worldwide French enterprise group Zodiac. Evac designs, manufactures and markets environmentally friendly water collecting and water treatment systems for shipbuilding industry. Skilled personnel, professional design and high-quality technical solutions have facilitated continuous growth, both in market share and in turnover. Evac Marine’s net sales were 35 MEUR in the fiscal year 2004/2005.

Evac Marine is the market leader in its field. More than 30 years in the business has resulted in vast experience - from sailing boats to big luxury cruise liners - and a good 8,500 references.

Evac Oy, supported by the other Evac companies and representatives in more than 40 countries, is responsible for the Marine-business worldwide. Evac Oy is certified by Lloyd’s according to ISO 9001:2000 quality assurance standards and ISO 14001:2004 environmental standards. Our premises are located in Espoo, Finland.



For additional information, please contact:
Juha Kiukas
Director, Customer Projects
Evac Oy, Veininlaaksontie 1
FI-02620 Espoo, Finland
Tel.: +358 20 763 0250
Mobile: +358 50 468 7920
E-mail: jkiukas@evac.zodiac.com
Fax: +358 20 763 0222

http://www.evac.com

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