AGENDA | Afvalwater Europa 2027

Day 1: Wednesday 14 April 2027
Day 2: Thursday 15 April 2027

WASTEWATER REGULATION, RESILIENCE & RESPONSE IN EUROPE
09:15																Keynote presentation: European R&I Contribution to the Revised Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive and opportunities for industry representatives Evdokia Achilleos, Head of Sector, European Research Executive Agency, European Commission - Belgium
09:35																Wastewater Regulation and Innovation - a European Comparison A panel of wastewater leaders compare the regulatory frameworks in their countries and how they overcome regulatory barriers to drive innovation in wastewater treatment, infrastructure and networks. Christoph Donner, CEO and Board Member, Ruhrverband - Germany Cláudio de Jesus, Chairman and CEO, Águas do Tejo Atlântico - Portugal Jessica Alce, Strategic Innovation & Carbon Lead, Severn Trent - UK
10:05																Panel debate: Building Resilience and Adaptation into European Wastewater Systems What will it take to finance resilient wastewater systems in a transformative era? How prepared are our systems for climate extremes - and what closes the gap between strategy and operations? How can we better manage and protect our wastewater assets and infrastructure? Climate adaptation: what could the next 5-10 years look like for the water sector? Evina Katsou, Chair Professor, Imperial College London - UK Oliver Loebel, Secretary General, EurEau - Belgium Joyeeta Gupta, Full Professor on Environment and Development in the Global South, University of Amsterdam - The Netherlands Alessandro Bratti, Vice-President, WAREG & Board Member, ARERA - Italy
10:45																Networking break and refreshments

SESSION A: WATER REUSE & CLIMATE-RESILIENT PLANNING
11:15																Keynote: Direct Effluent Reuse - Insight from Belgium Jan Goossens, CEO, Aquafin - Belgium
11:35																The Future of Water Reuse: Overcoming Regulatory and Public Barriers Current and future opportunities around potable reuse How can the industry work to build public trust and acceptance? Tackling governance issues Ruben Fernandes, Head of the Directorate for Environment, Nature Conservation and Biodiversity, CCDR-N - Portugal
11:50																Circular Wastewater Management and Water Reuse Navigating EU regulatory frameworks How can we ensure climate-resilient systems and operations for the future? Reuse and treatment of rainwater: where are the opportunities? Francesco Fatone, Professor of Chemical & Environmental Engineering, Università Politecnica delle Marche - Italy
12:05																Closing the Water Loop - Connecting Wastewater Utilities with Irrigation Demand Wastewater Irrigation: Opportunities for Industry Daria Fontana, Specialist, European Irrigation Association - Belgium
12:15																Questions and answers
12:45																Fork buffet lunch, networking and exhibition

SESSION B: WASTEWATER CIRCLE: 'THE WAR ON MICROPOLLUTANTS'
11:15																Wastewater Circle: 'The War on Micropollutants' Join us for an intimate, outcome-focused discussion, bringing together senior wastewater leaders to explore how the industry should be tackling the issue of micropollutants in wastewater. Apply to attend. Oli Raud, Associate Director, Isle Utilities - UK
12:45																Fork buffet lunch, networking and exhibition

SESSION A: NEXT GENERATION WASTEWATER TREATMENT
13:45																Lightning pitches: wastewater treatment technologies Solution providers take to the stage for a rapid 90-second pitch, giving you a quick-fire snapshot of the latest wastewater treatment technologies and innovations transforming the industry.
14:00																The Wastewater Treatment Plant of the Future Maaike Hoekstra, Innovation Technologist, STOWA - The Netherlands
14:15																Effective Energy Management and Low-carbon Technology Solutions Giovanni Vargiu, Circular Treatment Director, Gruppo CAP - Italy
14:30																GHG Emission Reduction with Focus on N2O Reduction from Wastewater Treatment Plants for Climate Neutral Water Treatment Systems Johann Poinapen, Impact Leader, KWR Water Research Institute – The Netherlands
14:45																Questions and answers
15:00																Networking break and refreshments

SESSION B: WASTEWATER CIRCLE: 'THE WASTEWATER CIRCULAR ECONOMY'
13:45																Wastewater Circle: 'The Wastewater Circular Economy' Join us for an intimate, outcome-focused discussion, bringing together senior wastewater leaders to explore how the industry should be tackling the wastewater circular economy. Apply to attend. Oli Raud, Associate Director, Isle Utilities - UK
15:00																Networking break and refreshments

INTELLIGENT WASTEWATER NETWORKS
15:30																From Data to Decisions: the Waternet Knowledge Graph for Smarter and More Sustainable Wastewater Networks Implementation of a Knowledge Graph and Digital Twin approach to connect fragmented asset, spatial and operational data for better decisions How connected information can support network optimisation, climate resilience, circular asset management and investment decisions Alexander Worp, Asset Information Manager, Waternet - The Netherlands
15:45																Quick-Pig: A New Standard for Pressure Sewer Pigging Innovative solutions for safer sewage pipelines Nico Hindriks, Head of Sales Wastewater, Reinert-Ritz - Germany
16:00																From Monitoring to Action: Turning Wastewater Network Data into Proactive Operational Decisions Moving from retrospective performance reporting to proactive, intelligence-led decision making Bringing together EDM, ASV, telemetry, rainfall, asset and operational data to identify emerging risks, improve data confidence and enable earlier intervention Enabling faster decisions, stronger regulatory confidence and better environmental outcomes Mamatha Veesam, Technical Improvement Manager, Southern Water - UK
16:15																Questions and answers
16:25																Lightning pitches: intelligent wastewater networks Solution providers take to the stage for a rapid 90-second pitch, giving you a quick-fire snapshot of the latest technologies and innovations driving intelligent wastewater networks.

CLOSING KEYNOTE
16:40																Closing keynote: Funding, Technology and Innovation in Wastewater to Support Future Generations Gaëtane Suzenet, President and Co-Founder, European Water Tech Accelerator - France
17:00																Close of day one programme

MICROPOLLUTANT SURVEILLANCE & PUBLIC PROTECTION
09:30																Preparing for the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive: Micropollutant Monitoring Assessment across five WWTPs in the Barcelona metropolitan area Susana Gonzalez Blanco, Water Quality Manager – Wastewater and Reclaimed Water, Aigües de Barcelona - Spain
09:50																Degradation of Micropollutants in Wastewater: How Can We Ensure Public Safety? Considering carbon footprint and environmental quality in treatment processes Insights into a pilot project on quaternary and quinary treatment on biological treated wastewater Challenges and opportunities around ozone treatment Morten Rebsdorf, Senior Project Leader, Aarhus Vand - Denmark
10:10																A Comprehensive Strategy on Micropollutant Reductions in the Erft Watershed Monitoring, assessment, and measures Christoph Brepols, Project Manager – Wastewater Treatment, Erftverband - Germany
10:30																Questions and answers
10:45																Networking break and refreshments

SESSION A: NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS
11:15																Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems: Opportunities for Europe The role of NBS in wastewater resilience strategies Matt Moore, Strategic Flood & Partnership Manager, Anglian Water - UK
11:30																Rainwater and climate-resilient urban water management in Germany Opportunities for nature-based solutions Franziska Meinzinger, Head of Infrastructure Development, Hamburg Wasser - Germany
11:45																Mainstreaming Nature-Based Solutions Project ambitions and outcomes Driving catchment-based approaches to transform the water environment Jack Spees, CEO, Ribble Rivers Trust - UK
12:00																Questions and answers
12:15																Fork buffet lunch, networking and exhibition

SESSION B: OPTIMISING TREATMENT PROCESSES: RESOURCE RECOVERY & EMISSIONS
11:15																Circular Water and Resource Recovery from Wastewater Kees Roest, Senior Scientific Researcher - Energy & Circular Systems, KWR Water Research Institute - The Netherlands
11:30																Generating Energy from Wastewater Biomethane and heat recovery Marco Andrea Muzzati, Head of Energy Technical Area, Gruppo CAP - Italy
11:45																Delivering operational process optimisation to reduce N2O emissions and energy consumption Practical lessons from developing and delivering operational process optimisation across wastewater treatment sites Creating sustainable improvements that can be maintained long after implementation Alignment with Severn Trent's wider AMP8 net zero programme Alex Harrison, Process Emissions Manager, Severn Trent - UK
12:00																Questions and answers
12:15																Fork buffet lunch, networking and exhibition

STORM OVERFLOW MONITORING & SPILLS
13:15																A Deep Dive into Yorkshire Water’s CSO Programme Ongoing work to upgrade and improve CSOs to protect the environment and communities in the Yorkshire region Jon Stokes, Head of Yorkshire Storm Alliance, Yorkshire Water - UK
13:35																Panel discussion: Rainwater Management, Overflows and Environmental Impact A look at policy, environmental impact monitoring and upstream rainwater management across Europe Matt Wheeldon, Sustainable Solutions Director, Wessex Water Manuel Aranha, Vice-President of the Board, Águas e Energia do Porto - Portugal Victoria Cherrier, Deputy Director Wastewater, Water UK - UK Birgit De Bock, R&D Manager, Aquafin - Belgium

FUTURE-PROOFING THE WASTEWATER SECTOR
14:15																Building the Plant: Turning Serbia's Wastewater Challenges into Opportunities Transitioning from fragmented, short-term solutions towards strategic utility–industry partnerships Preparing for tomorrow’s challenges including micropollutants and PFAS, energy neutrality, resource recovery, advanced monitoring and AI-enabled wastewater management Sofija Kovač, Senior Technologist for Wastewater Treatment, JKP Vodovod i kanalizacija Novi Sad - Serbia
14:35																Closing Keynote: From Directive to Direction: future-proofing the wastewater sector in a changing world As the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive reshapes regulatory expectations across the continent, Europe has an opportunity to move beyond compliance and establish itself as the global benchmark for integrated water management. Drawing on three decades of research, policy advisory work, and hands-on utility engagement across more than 120 countries, Professor Phoebe Koundouri will set out a vision for wastewater within the broader context of sector-wide transformation. Phoebe Koundouri, Professor; Co-Chair, IGS Global Sustainable Development Report 2027 & Chairperson, WCEREA, Athens University of Economics and Business - Greece
15:00																Questions and answers
15:15																End of WWT’s Wastewater Europe 2027 Conference