As the world observes the International Zero Waste Day on 30 March, the WalNUT project has joined the campaign by highlighting its commitment to sustainable agricultural practices. It will show how it recovers nutrients from wastewater to create bio-based fertilisers and circular economy solutions.
Current farming practices threaten soil health through nutrient imbalances, leading to problems like soil degradation and nutrient loss. To tackle these challenges requires innovative, sustainable approaches to reduce waste and use resources more effectively, aligned with the
International Zero Waste Day principles and goals.
The WalNUT project focuses on
turning wastewater into a valuable resource. Recognising wastewater as a valuable resource, WalNUT extracts essential nutrients from wastewater streams and repurposes them into
bio-based fertilisers, offering a valuable alternative to traditional mineral-based options, reducing reliance on natural reserves while
fostering a more circular and sustainable agricultural system.
Partners of the WalNUT project share their insights on the importance of nutrient recovery and circular economy initiatives:
Francisco Corona (CARTIF, Project Coordinator) – "WalNUT recovers nutrients from wastewater, turning waste into bio-based fertilisers. By integrating circular economy principles and sustainable technologies, it reduces pollution, closes nutrient loops, and moves towards a #ZeroWasteEU future."
Morten Birkved (University of South Denmark) – "WalNUT seeks to enable recovery of nutrients from wastewater through development of pilot plants capable of demonstrating how environmentally and economically sustainable nutrient recovery from wastewater can contribute to the future circular economy of nutrients."
Fernando Burgoa (CARTIF) – “Nutrients in wastewater are like a double-edged sword – a wasted valuable resource, but at the same time a potential threat to the environment. Upcycling these nutrients solves two problems at once: reducing pollution while producing valuable resources. A true win-win! #ZeroWasteEU"
Edward Someus (3R) – "3R is implementing a zero waste, zero emission, and energy-independent technology for upcycling of food industrial by-product streams for economical production of high nutrient-dense recovered BioPhosphate bio-fertilisers for agriculture and adsorbents for wastewater treatment."
ITACyL – "Circularity in action – The WalNUT Project works to transform waste into resources, promoting technologies that recover nutrients and give new life to what was previously discarded. We believe that a future without waste is not a dream, it is a path that we are building!"
NTUA – "The WalNUT Greek pilot, by NTUA, achieves Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) by converting desalination brine into micronutrients (Mg(OH)₂, CaCO₃, Na₂SO₄) that can be utilised as biofertilizers, along with NaCl and KCl salts and distilled water for industrial & agricultural utilisation."
Alejandro Saldarriaga Vásquez (Veolia) – "As a partner of the WalNUT project, we will reduce the waste generated by recovering nutrients from wastewater to produce bio-based fertilizers. With this in mind, one of the main advantages is the new operative of wastewater treatment following the circular economy."
International Zero Waste Day serves as a global call to action for innovative waste reduction strategies across industries, which aligns with WalNUT’s mission.
About WalNUT:
The WalNUT project is dedicated to closing wastewater cycles for nutrient recovery, developing bio-based fertilizers that support sustainable agriculture and reduce reliance on finite nutrient-mineral reserves. By promoting circular economy principles, WalNUT aims to mitigate environmental impacts while ensuring food security for the future.