The Municipality of Gjilan and neighbouring communities suffer from a significant underinvestment in the water and wastewater infrastructure that result in poor water quality and water losses of up to 56%. Raw sewage and industrial waste contaminate many surface water sources. Most of the operating industries discharge untreated effluent straight into the streams and tributaries of the Morava and Mirusha rivers, which eventually flow into the Danube. In rural areas, the majority of houses discharge wastewater straight into streams, natural ponds, or sewage ponds formed at discharge points.
This investment concerns the construction of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) with a capacity of 76,000 population equivalent, with primary and secondary treatment and anaerobic sludge digestion, and the rehabilitation and extension of the wastewater network in Gjilan and neighbouring communities (7.0 km sewage network rehabilitation and 35.3 km of the new sewage network).
By providing access to improved sanitation services to the local population through enhanced wastewater collection and treatment capacities, these investments will considerably reduce the volumes of raw wastewater and its associated pollutant loads that will be discharged into the Mirusha and Morava rivers and eventually the Danube. Moreover, the enhanced wastewater collection capacity will also reduce the contamination risk of groundwater through leaking septic tanks.
