RECHARGE: Green bioremediation to abate micropollutants. Safeguarding the drinking water cycle for future generations

Freshwater resources such as groundwater for drinking water production are scarce due to various reasons of which one is the presence of a multitude of recalcitrant micropollutants (pesticides, pharmaceuticals …). This problem is relevant for both Europe and China. In this call, which enables the collaboration between China (NSFC) and EU (Horizon2020), both Chinese and European research groups will aim at improving and optimizing biodegradation of micropollutants in low strength waters intended for drinking water production and groundwater recharge after waste water treatment by means of sustainable biological technologies (bioaugmentation/biostimulation) to replace non-sustainable physicochemical treatment techniques. The groundwater recharge will replenish depleted groundwater aquifers, hereby guaranteeing future drinking water reserves. Specialist bacterial strains will be deployed to guarantee the complete mineralization of the micropollutants. Past attempts to use these bacteria for bioaugmentation in drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) show the need for optimization to combat starvation, to adress the non-selective conditions (micro-pollutant is a non-selective C-source) and the competition with resident bacteria for resources, to improve mass transfer due to the low pollutant concentrations, and to deal with the short hydraulic retention times. Micropollutant biodegradation in low strength waters will be improved by a combination of approaches from different water treatment fields founded on improved principles such as (1) biostimulation (e.g. electrochemically or by addition of nutrients), (2) bioaugmentation (in combination with biostimulation) and (3) advanced water treatment technology e.g. membranes and biocatalysts.