Connecting Waterpeople
Printed Edition Nº 7 - April 2021

White smoke in Paris: Veolia and Suez reach agreement on merger

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Featured content

Content summary

We release the April issue of Smart Water Magazine Bimonthly. Our cover page features Antoine Frerót, CEO of Veolia, and Bertrand Camus, CEO of Suez. After eight months of conflict, the French companies have reached an agreement on the terms and conditions of a merger between them. In our business section we also interview Patrick Blethon, CEO of SAUR, another major player in the global water sector. Now more than ever water companies strive to deliver their services with sustainability in mind, making use of the latest technology and innovation. In this issue Tedagua presents a holistic approach to design, build and operate water and wastewater services to support socioeconomic progress in the Provisur project. And we showcase the use of IoT in the water industry: while Hidroconta presents a telemetry project to monitor domestic water use, Droople shows how IoT technology can be applied to water filtration in the hospitality industry. Innovation moves with giant steps, and Xylem intends to lead change in the water industry: their Xylem Ignite global youth program aims to harness the passion and creativity of young people.

Find all this and much more in Smart Water Magazine Bimonthly 7.

Features

Veolia and SUEZ: Olivia Tempest looks into the potential benefits of the announced merger between the two French leaders of environmental services.

A close look at the Tedagua’s Provisur project in Lima, a public-private collaboration to ensure reliable water supply and sanitation.

Can a network digitalisation project contribute to sustainable water resource use? Read more in this article by Hidroconta.

Xylem Ignite banks on the passion, creativity and command of technology of young people to drive innovation in the water industry.

Droople delves into the role of IoT technologies in water filtration solutions to ensure predictive maintenance and customer support.

Interviews

Patrick Blethon, CEO of Saur

  • We established a new strategic framework based on 4 pillars: reinforce our competitiveness and our positioning in the French market
  • We acquired Nijhuis Industries, Unidro and Econvert to build an international industry platform and consolidate our expertise
  • We launched the NextGen’Voices, a new program dedicated to millennials, to continue building with the future generations of Saur’s leaders
  • Nijhuis Industries will bring Saur’s Industrial Water activities to a step-changing level with a complete portfolio of advanced solutions
  • The group pursues an ambitious objective: champion and support the ecological transition of our customers in all territories

Catherine Moncrieff, Associate Director of Water Security, CDP

  • Over the last 20 years we’ve seen a step-change in how aware companies – and their investors and consumers – are of water risks
  • In 2009 we sent our first disclosure request for corporate water data, with just 175 pioneering companies responding that year
  • L’Oréal has reduced the water footprint of its operations by establishing “Waterloop” factories where all water is reused or recycled
  • Asian companies dominate our water security ‘A List’. 46 out of 106 companies that score an A on their water disclosures are in Asia

HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Suqia UAE

  • The biennial Award supports research and development of new and innovative technologies that harness the potential of renewable energy
  • The previous Award winners recognised bright minds for their pioneering ideas in water desalination and purification systems
  • Providing access to clean water is synonymous with giving hope, as it provides an opportunity for better health and wellbeing
  • Governments in developing countries need to increase the resilience and sustainability of the water supply and sanitation industries

Mikita Browning, Commissioner of Watershed Management. City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management

  • We are currently implementing the migration of our data centre to the cloud in support of the City of Atlanta's cloud first strategy
  • Under the Capital Improvement Program, upgrades allow for lower operations and maintenance requirements and operate more efficiently
  • DWM has continued investments under two Guaranteed Energy Savings Performance Contracts to save energy and reduce O&M costs
  • The Nutrient Recovery System at the R.M. Clayton WRC is expected to remove 150 tons of phosphorus and 70 tons of nitrogen per year
  • The Customer Experience Improvement Program aims to establish a new culture as part of the commitment to a world-class experience

Dr Duminda Perera. United Nations University. Institute for Water, Environment and Health

  • Decommissioning dams is a recent phenomenon but is becoming progressively more common on various scales globally and regionally
  • The USA plays the leading role in dam decommissioning, removing nearly 1,275 dams in 21 states over the previous 30 years
  • Fisheries, agriculture, tourism, and hydropower will be affected by dam removal and, in turn, impact employment and livelihoods
  • Decommissioning is an issue emerging globally, therefore it is essential to develop a standard or commonly used regulatory procedures

Dr Peter Bauer. Deputy Director of the Research Department at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF)

  • The concept of Destination Earth emerged from the need to greatly accelerate simulation model skill and observational data usage
  • In phase 1, the initial digital twins will focus on weather induced and geophysical extremes and climate change adaptation
  • Users will be from all sectors: traditional weather, climate and environmental services, civil protection, food, water, energy, etc.
  • A major data source will be Earth-system simulations based on high-resolution models that we aim to combine with the observations
  • Destination Earth should provide a much more integrated tool for planning policy measures and controlling their effectiveness

Opinion articles

  • Dr Newsha K. Ajami, Director of Urban Water Policy. Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment
  • David Reavley, Chief Executive Officer at Solar Water Plc
  • Emilio Tenuta, Senior Vice President & Chief Sustainability Officer ECOLAB
  • Danielle Fopp. Civil (Water) Engineer and Lecturer. The University of South Australia
  • Victoria Edwards, CEO and Co-founder at FIDO Tech
  • Osward M. Chanda, Manager, Water Security and Sanitation Division
  • Rachael McDonnell, Strategic Program Director – Water, Climate Change and Resilience, the International Water Management Institute (IWMI)

Sponsors

Hidroconta
Almar Water Solutions
Minsait
Droople