Vendee, France – Jourdain indirect potable reuse demonstration project
Located on the western coast of France, Vendée is a very popular summer holiday destination. However, the region relies mainly (more than 90%) on surface water storages for its drinking water production, and it has been confronted with severe water droughts over the past two decades.
In order to secure vital water supplies for the growing population while sustaining its peak summer holiday demand, and to adapt to climate change, Vendée Eau has embarked on an indirect potable reuse demonstration project called “Jourdain programme”. The objective of the experiment is to be able to validate the technological, sociological, health and environmental components of Indirect Potable Reuse via Reservoir Augmentation, in order to bring changes in the regulations, and move towards a permanent solution to secure the drinking water supply for the people of Vendée.
An advanced water treatment demonstration unit was built and commissioned in 2023 with an initial capacity to process 3.6 million litres (0.95 million gallons) per day of secondary treated effluent from the Sables d’Olonne wastewater treatment plant. During its first year of operations (validation period), the purified water is tested to demonstrate the performance of the treatment process and its operation, then mixed back with the wastewater treatment plant effluent to be discharged via the current wastewater treatment plant ocean outfall.
Subject to the approval of authorities, the purified water will then be pumped back to the Jaunay reservoir via a dedicated 27 km pipeline where it will be released via a vegetated transition zone of about 3 hectares. The water quality will then be monitored for a further 3 years throughout its entire cycle (raw wastewater, secondary effluent, purified water,
dam water, drinking water). Ultimately, upon successful demonstration of the treatment process and controls, Vendée Eau aims at building a permanent full-scale plant capable of processing 14.4 million litres (3.8 million gallons) per day of secondary effluent to Indirect Potable Reuse.
Related resources: