Igudan - Union Cities discusses environmental infrastructure

The Dan Region Association of Towns for Sewage and Environmental Issues (“Igudan”) was founded in 1956 by seven major towns in the Dan Metropolitan Region, including the City of Tel Aviv.
According to its articles of incorporation, Igudan is responsible for the collection, handling and treatment of sewage in the Dan Region.

The Association established a subsidiary company (Dan Region Water) in the mid 1980s which constructed the Dan Region Wastewater Treatment Plant (“the Shafdan”) near the city of Rishon Lezion.

Although Dan Region Water is a subsidiary company of Igudan, it acts as a separate and independent business unit. Dan Region Water operates and maintains the Shafdan Plant and is continually promoting new projects for the purpose of its upgrade and development.

Igudan operates 70 km of pipelines and a number of pumping stations, through which sewage from its original 7 member municipalities and another 19 municipalities around the Dan Region is collected and conveyed for treatment at the Shafdan Plant.

After the treatment process at the Shafdan Plant, the purified effluent is collected by the Israeli National Water Company (“Mekorot”) and used as a primary source of irrigation for agricultural activity in the Negev Desert. The Shafdan Plant is the largest wastewater treatment plant in the world that treats effluent for use in farm irrigation.

Altogether, Igudan serves a population of about 2 million people and treats approximately 370,000 m3/day of municipal wastewater at the Shafdan Plant.
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		The Eastern Line Project the construction of a collector pipeline from the town of Petach Tikvah to the Shafdan Plant, which is in its final stages. The pipeline is approx. 20 km long, 14 km of which was installed utilizing the pipe jacking method. Three large pumping stations are also constructed along the route. This US $170 million project is due to be completed in the 1st quarter of 2009 .

		The Ayalon Line Project the construction of an additional collector pipeline, which will run under the Ayalon Highway to the Hiriya Site where it will intercept the Eastern Line. This US $160 million project will also utilize the pipe jacking method and will be performed by a foreign contractor and an Israeli subcontractor.

		The Primary Treatment Project the treatment capacity of the Shafdan Plant is being expanded though the incorporation of primary treatment into the liquid treatment process. This US $50 million project is under construction and will be completed in about two years .

		The Sludge Treatment Project a land-based sludge treatment facility is planned that includes the construction of a sludge thickening and dewatering facility (which is due to be completed by the end of this year) and a new anaerobic digester facility.

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These projects, valued at a total of US $150 million, will be managed and executed by a foreign contractor, and are aimed at discontinuing the dumping of sludge in the sea and allowing implementation of a more environmentally-friendly solution to the issue of sludge disposal.

In addition, numerous projects have been initiated in recent years to upgrade and improve existing systems, among them the US $25 million renewal of the Yafo Pipeline and the construction of biological facilities (bio-filters) to handle odor nuisances from the Reading and Holon pumping stations

Igudan will begin the execution of several more projects in coming years.