WET System’s constructed wetland expert, Dr Tom Headley, was invited to give a Keynote presentation in front of more than 300 leading international wetland scientists and engineers at the 8th International Symposium on Wetland Pollution Dynamics & Control in Denmark on 19th of June 2019.
Tom’s presentation “How to turn 200,000 m3/day of oily wastewater in the middle of the desert into a 480ha Treatment Wetland oasis” showcased his experiences over the past 8 years working on the largest industrial constructed wetland system in the world; the Nimr Produced Water Treatment Plant which is built, owned and operated by the BAUER Nimr company in Oman. Tom has spent the past 2 year’s leading the wetland design for a new addition to the project, featuring an additional 130 ha of surface flow wetlands and 290 ha of ponds with a capacity to handle up to 80,000 m3/d of oilfield wastewater. The wetlands were planted in March and has been operating since May 2019.
Tom shared some of his lessons learnt from 8 years of operation of the existing facility and how these learnings were used to optimise the design of the new expansion.
Tom’s presentation of this flagship international example of what can be achieved using wetland technology powered by nature to turn oil-laden wastewater into crystal clear water was very well received and provided valuable inspiration to his peers who are also toiling hard to progress the research and implementation of wetland systems for water pollution control around the world.