The University of Eastern Finland (Joensuu) hosted the kick-off meeting of the participants of the project “Reaching congenial region through valorization of municipal and industrial wastewaters and sludge” implemented in the framework of the ENI Karelia CBC.

The University of Eastern Finland (Joensuu) hosted the kick-off meeting of the participants of the project “Reaching congenial region through valorization of municipal and industrial wastewaters and sludge” implemented in the framework of the ENI Karelia CBC.

Petrozavodsk State University, the Flagship University of the Republic of Karelia, participates in the project on the Russian side.

The project aims to find optimal solutions for treatment and disposal of wastewater and reduction of environmental load through decreasing the volume of waste stored in disposal sites. The issues of accumulation of sewage sludge exist in both Karelia and Finland. Search for joint solutions would foster economic relations between the neighbouring regions.

“Our mission is to search and practice methods of sewage sludge treatment. Thus far Karelia has not solved this problem and a great amount of wet depositions occupy more and more areas with each year,” said the leading specialist of the project, Candidate of Technical Sciences Elena Grafova, the Associate Professor of the Department of Management in Construction Operations of the Institute of Forestry, Mining and Construction Sciences of PetrSU.

The financial partners of the project are the University of Oulu, the University of Eastern Finland, companies Valio and Ecolan, and Outokumpu municipality.

The Russian partners of the project are PKS – Vodokanal, Karevodokanal, sewage water treatment plants in Petrozavodsk and Sortavala, which will be the premises for testing new technologies.

“The first meeting was efficient. All participants of the project had an opportunity to meet each other. We have fully canvassed the project plan and the tasks implemented by each participant of the project,” shared her impressions the Head of the Department of International Projects and Programs of PetrSU Galina Parikhina.

The aim of the ENI Karelia CBC Program is to increase the appeal of the region for living and business. The principal regions of the Program are the Republic of Karelia in Russia and 3 regions in Finland (Kainuu, North Karelia, Oulu).

Petrozavodsk State University implements 17 projects of the ENI Karelia for a total sum of 6.3 million euro. The participation in the cross-border cooperation program is aimed at the achievement of one of the objectives of the national project “Science”, which stipulates presence of the Russian Federation in the top five countries of the world that carry out research and development in the areas defined in accordance with the priorities of research and technology development.